Handicraft products are made at a company in northern Ninh Binh Province. The domestic handicraft sector expects to achieve its export target of US$1.6 billion in 2014. — VNA/VNS Photo Dinh Hue

HA NOI (Biz Hub)— Handicraft orders from China and Japan have shifted to Viet Nam, offering a good opportunity for the domestic handicraft sector to achieve its export target of US$1.6 billion in 2014.

The Viet Nam Handicraft Exporters Association (Vietcraft) General Secretary Le Ba Ngoc attributed this trend to foreign importers increasing their trust in the quality of Vietnamese handicrafts.

In recent years, many handicraft producers have focused on middle and high-end market segments, resulting in big changes in the quality of their products as well as the positioning of Vietnamese handicrafts on the world market, Ngoc said.

Vietcraft's statistics revealed that the export value of handicraft products reached nearly US$900 million over the first half of this year, up 10 per cent against the same period last year.

Besides exports to traditional markets such as the US, Japan and EU, Ngoc said, enterprises in the handicraft sector were told to exploit opportunities in the five countries in the BRICS bloc – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

He described the bloc as a potential market for the handicraft sector thanks to the favourable geographical location. Except for Brazil and South Africa, Viet Nam has strengths for market research and transport for the bloc's three remaining countries.

In order to archive higher export turnover, Ngoc suggested that small scale enterprises strive to capture the mid-market segment in accordance with its production capacity, raw materials and skilled workers rather than the cheap segment.

Sharpening competition and expanding co-operation channels were also needed, he said.

Director of Ha Noi Industry Promotion Centre Hoang Xuan Thuy advised domestic businesses to register copyright as a move to protect their design and avoid duplication. — VNS