Workers at a Thai company in Ha Noi's Noi Bai Industrial Zone manufacture motorbike spare parts. Thai enterprises are eagerly looking to co-operate with Vietnamese firms in many sectors. — VNA/VNS Photo Danh Lam

HCM CITY (Biz Hub) — Thai enterprises are eagerly looking to co-operate further with Vietnamese firms in several sectors such as food processing, beverages, automobile manufacturing, garment and textiles, footwear, logistics and support industry.

Deputy Director of the Industrial Promotion Department under Thailand's Ministry of Industry, Prasong Nilbanjong, spoke about the situation at a conference on Tuesday in HCM City.

He said that more than 60 Thai companies at the forum hoped that closer co-ordination with Vietnamese firms would make them more competitive when the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) takes effect later this year.

The Chairman of Thailand-Viet Nam Friendship Association, Prachuab Chaiyasan, agreed, saying the formation of the AEC will open up huge opportunities for enterprises in the bloc, which has a huge market of 600 million people.

In order to effectively tap into the lucrative market, firms need to foster co-operation that utilizes their advantages, he said.

Deputy President of the HCM City Business Association, Pham Ngoc Hung, also spoke at the event, commenting on how Thai companies have sped up trade promotion in Viet Nam, which they consider a promising market.

Bilateral trade between Viet Nam and Thailand reached US$10.6 billion in 2014, surging 12.5 per cent from the previous year, vietnamplus.vn reports.

The figure has continued to grow given that trade hit $5.2 billion in the first half of this year, up 8 per cent year-on-year.

Thailand is the biggest importer of and second largest exporter to Viet Nam. The two nations aim to raise their bilateral trade value to $20 billion by 2020. — VNS