Footwear enterprises from the Republic of Korea (RoK) are operating effectively in Viet Nam and their investment flows to the country are expected to increase strongly once the EU-Viet Nam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) is signed.

According to Lee Young Man, President of the Korean Footwear Association in Viet Nam, more than 100 Korean businesses are operating in the field in Viet Nam, with nearly 80 per cent of them active in the southern province of Binh Duong.

The Korean Footwear Association in Viet Nam has organised activities to enable businesses to exchange experiences in order to increase competitiveness, he said.

At present, the association has 90 members and most of them are performing well. It aims to develop the membership to 120 this year.

According to the Vietnam Leather, Footwear and Handbag Association (LEFASO), Viet Nam exported around US$14.67 billion worth of footwear last year, ranking second in the world.

In the first four months of this year, the industry’s exports were worth $4.5 billion, and the full-year target is $20 billion.

The RoK is the biggest foreign investor in Viet Nam with over 6,760 valid projects which have total registered capital of more than $59 billion.

Trade between Viet Nam and the RoK reached $61.5 billion in 2017, up 41 per cent year on year, including Viet Nam’s exports of $14.8 billion, a rise of 30 per cent over 2016. — VNS