Vietnamese products leaving Saigon Port to Hong Kong.

Vietnamese products have become more and more visible in the market of Hong Kong (China) thanks to strong trade ties between the two sides, said Vu Thi Thuy, head of the Vietnamese Trade Office in Hong Kong.

Thuy cited statistics from the General Department of Vietnam Customs showing that two-way trade between Vietnam and Hong Kong rose 18 percent year on year to 13.6 billion USD in 2021, with Vietnam's exports valued at 12 billion USD, up 15 percent.

The Hong Kong market accounted for 3.6 percent of Vietnam’s total export revenue, she noted.

In terms of investment, Thuy said that as of December 20, 2021, Hong Kong was the fifth largest investor in Vietnam with 2,041 projects worth 27.83 billion USD, focusing on processing-manufacturing, garment and textile, service, real estate and construction sectors.

In 2021, 126 new Hong Kong-invested projects were licensed in Vietnam with total capital of nearly 1.7 billion USD, she noted.

Thuy said that despite COVID-19, trade between the two sides have remained stable and Vietnam continued to enjoy trade surplus in the market. Vietnam has affirmed its position and production capacity in the global production and supply chains with tighter links with those in Hong Kong.

At the same time, Vietnam has been among the top 10 biggest trade partners of Hong Kong for many years. In 2021, Vietnam rose to the seventh position, and the second among ASEAN countries.

The ASEAN-Hong Kong free trade agreement, which took effect from 2019, has also contributed to promote two-way trade which has increased over 10 percent each year, Thuy said, adding that more and more Vietnamese products have been sold in Hong Kong.

Vietnamese garment, footwear, pork and seafood have been popular among Hong Kong consumers, she said.

According to Thuy, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) has created positive impacts on the Vietnam-Hong Kong trade and investment cooperation. RCEP, the biggest trade pact in the world, brings together 10 ASEAN member states, along with China, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Australia and New Zealand, covering 30 percent of the global gross domestic product (GDP) worth 26.2 trillion USD. In June 2021, Hong Kong filed a request to join the deal.

Thuy said that in the time to come, the Vietnamese Consulate General and the Vietnamese Trade Office in Hong Kong plan to implement many activities to promote Vietnamese strong products in Hong Kong as well as in the region and the world, while helping attract more Hong Kong investors to Vietnam./.