Conference elevates Vietnam-Kazakhstan trade and investment cooperation

Encouraging investment

In his opening speech, Kazakh Deputy Minister of Trade and Integration Kairat Torebayev said that Southeast Asia is an attractive and promising investment and trade destination for Kazakhstan. In 2023, the value of trade between Kazakhstan and East Asian countries grew strongly, such as an eight percent increase with China, 30 percent with Hong Kong (China), 20 percent with the Republic of Korea, and 46 percent with Vietnam.

Vietnamese Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien and Kazakh Deputy Minister of Trade and Integration Kairat Torebayev

Deputy Minister Kairat Torebayev emphasized that Vietnam has been one of Kazakhstan’s important partners in Asia. In 2023, the value of bilateral trade reached US$979.2 million, an increase of 85.4 percent compared to 2022, with Kazakhstan’s exports to Vietnam growing by 43.7 percent, reaching US$180.2 million.

“Kazakhstan’s exports to Vietnam continue to grow. In the first quarter of 2024, Kazakhstan’s exports to Vietnam reached US$62.5 million, a year-on-year increase of 4.8 percent,” informed Deputy Minister Kairat Torebayev.

Overview of the Vietnam-Kazakhstan Trade and Investment Cooperation Conference

According to Deputy Minister Kairat Torebayev, in 2023, during the official visit of Kazakh President K. Tokayev to Vietnam, leaders of the two countries signed a Joint Action Plan to accelerate the development of economic and trade cooperation in the 2023-2025 period. This Joint Action Plan serves as a guideline for the two sides to implement measures to further promote bilateral economic and trade cooperation in such areas as trade, investment, and agriculture. The Intergovernmental Committee mechanism has also been creating conditions for the two sides to strengthen cooperation.

Kazakhstan not only provides a stable investment environment, but also offers transportation and logistics services, an important driver to enhance the trade flows between Vietnam and Kazakhstan: Kazakh Deputy Minister of Trade and Integration Kairat Torebayev

Deputy Minister Kairat Torebayev said that Kazakhstan has the potential to export to Vietnam over 70 product lines worth around US$495 million across various sectors. In March 2023, a Kazakh business delegation visited Vietnam and expressed interest in cooperating with Vietnamese companies in areas, such as production of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, confectionery, Halal-certified meat products, as well as in transportation, logistics, and the aviation industry.

Notably, Deputy Minister Kairat Torebayev emphasized that aviation is a promising area of cooperation. Currently, there are 13 flights per week between Kazakhstan and Vietnam, helping accelerate import-export procedures, allowing increased transportation of high-value goods from Kazakhstan to Vietnam and vice versa.

“Kazakhstan not only provides a stable investment environment, but also offers transportation and logistics services. This is an important driver to enhance the trade flows between Vietnam and Kazakhstan,” Deputy Minister Kairat Torebayev said, affirming Kazakhstan’s willingness to expand cooperation with Vietnam in areas where the two sides have potential and strengths.

In his speech, Vietnamese Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien said that Vietnam and Kazakhstan enjoy a traditional, friendly relationship dating back to the Soviet era, and reestablished their relations in 1992. Both countries hold important positions and have a positive influence in the region and globally.

At the conference, Vietnamese Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien officially extends an invitation to enterprises from Kazakhstan and Central Asia, Eastern Europe to Vietnam to explore investment and cooperation opportunities

Minister Nguyen Hong Dien emphasized that Vietnam can serve as a gateway for Kazakh businesses to penetrate the ASEAN region and Asia-Pacific. Meanwhile, Kazakhstan can be a gateway for Vietnamese businesses to enter Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Kazakhstan also has the potential to provide raw materials and minerals for Vietnam.

Regarding Vietnam’s economic development, Minister Nguyen Hong Dien stated that Vietnam has emerged from war and embargo over the past nearly four decades. From a small economy with a gross domestic product (GDP) of over US$100 billion, Vietnam has become the world’s 39th largest economy with a GDP of over US$440 billion.

Furthermore, Vietnam is a country with a high and stable economic growth rate; it is an economy with a high degree of openness, with the import-export value nearly doubling its GDP. Vietnam’s annual foreign trade value is over US$730 billion. In addition, Vietnam maintains trade relations with most UN member countries and has 16 free trade agreements with most developed countries and major economies in the world.

Over the past eight years, Vietnam has been ranked as one of the world’s top 20 countries in terms of foreign trade, and one of the 15 most attractive destinations for foreign investors, with accumulated foreign investment totaling nearly US$470 billion from 141 countries and territories.

Vietnam also has a large population of over 100 million people, with 65 percent being in the working age. The country has 54 ethnic groups with very unique cultural identities. Vietnam has beautiful scenery, four-season climate, and many world-famous landscapes and natural wonders.

Vu Ba Phu, Director of the Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency

Minister Nguyen Hong Dien emphasized that Vietnam is called the “factory of the world” and, therefore, needs to cooperate with other countries to have a stable supply of fuels and materials for production and export, as well as to cooperate in scientific research and technology application, innovation, training, and provision of quality human resources.

Foreign enterprises investing in Vietnam can benefit from the country’s open, preferential policies and its young, skilled and hardworking workforce. They can not only exploit the Vietnamese market with over 100 million people, but also have the opportunity to access the ASEAN market with 600 million people, as well as the countries with which Vietnam has signed free trade agreements, with a population of 5-6 billion.

Le Trieu Dung, Chairman of the National Competition Commission

“At this conference, we officially extend an invitation to enterprises from Kazakhstan and Central Asia, Eastern Europe to come to Vietnam to explore investment and cooperation opportunities. The Vietnamese Government, ministries, and local authorities are willing to support you. We believe that the success of foreign investors in Vietnam is the success of Vietnam and vice versa,” Minister Nguyen Hong Dien said. He also encouraged Vietnamese enterprises to be more proactive and determined in seeking investment and business opportunities in Kazakhstan and the Central Asian region.

Affirming important role of trade promotion agencies

Director of the Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency (Vietrade) under the MoIT Vu Ba Phu underlined the important role of relevant units to increase trade revenue and investment between the two countries.

Trinh Anh Tuan, Director of the Trade Remedies Authority of Vietnam

Phu said the MoIT is studying to establish a Vietnamese Trade Office in Kazakhstan to monitor market opportunities and connect cooperation opportunities more closely. Phu expected that after the conference, agencies of the two countries will actively cooperate and organize a variety of trade and investment promotion activities to elevate Vietnam - Kazakhstan economic ties.

Vietnam has been completing its mechanisms and policies to facilitate trade and investment activities of foreign investors with more open, transparent policies in accordance with international bilateral and multilateral commitments.

At the conference, Director of the Trade Remedies Authority of Vietnam Trinh Anh Tuan said so far, Vietnam and the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) have not conducted any trade defense investigation and are making great efforts so that products and goods of both sides are easily accessible to consumers.

As for competition law issues, the Vietnam Competition Commission hoped to further promote cooperation with relevant agencies of the Republic of Kazakhstan to share information, experience, thereby enhancing a fair and effective competitive market environment and promoting trade and investment opportunities for businesses of both countries.

Also at the event, a large number of Vietnamese and Kazakh businesses exchanged opinions and discussed many areas of mutual interest, such as aviation, tourism, electric vehicles, renewable energy and technology.

Kazakh businesses propose areas of cooperation with Vietnamese enterprises

In areas of aviation and tourism, direct flights between Vietnam and Kazakhstan, connecting the capital Astana and Almaty city with the coastal city of Nha Trang have brought unprecedented advantages and made important contributions to the development of economic - trade - tourism relations between Vietnam and Kazakhstan and other countries in the region.

Meanwhile, a number of Kazakh enterprises and groups that have advantages in industries, especially green economic sectors, have also invited Vietnamese businesses to partner with them in manufacturing electric, energy-saving vehicles; in investment and development in the fields of finance, alcohol production, transportation, logistics, and more.

o conclude the conference, Minister Nguyen Hong Dien highly appreciated the recommendations and proposals of representatives of relevant agencies and the business communities of both Vietnam and Kazakhstan. The minister said there’s still ample room for bilateral cooperation; therefore, the functional agencies and business associations of the two sides need to strengthen cooperation and mutual support for further development.

“If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together” - Minister Nguyen Hong Dien shared and committed that the MoIT of Vietnam and the Ministry of Trade and Integration of Kazakhstan are willing to receive information, and listen to feedback from businesses of the two countries, thereby reviewing and proposing amendments to policies, mechanisms and efforts to create a more open business environment for the two countries’ businesses, for a common goal of strengthening economic cooperation and increasing Vietnam - Kazakhstan trade revenue.