Dragon fruit in Hung Yen Province's Kim Dong District grown, using Israeli auto watering technology. — VNA/VNS Photo Pham Kien

Viet Nam-Israel bilateral trade is likely to top US$1 billion this year, the Vietnamese trade office in Israel said on Wednesday.

According to Vietnamese trade counsellor to the country Le Thai Hoa, Viet Nam has exported an estimated $520 million to the country and splashed out some $127 million on Israeli imports during January-August.

Despite formidable challenges in the Israeli market, Viet Nam’s shipments to the country are expected to exceed $800 million, and imports hit $200 million for the whole year, he said.

The unstable political situation in Israel has made Vietnamese enterprises wary about doing business with their Israeli partners.

Therefore, Vietnamese exports to the country fell slightly during January-July while imports dwindled dramatically, mostly due to a drop in purchases of Israeli computers and electronic spare parts.

Hoa stressed as the two markets share complementary features, their products do not directly compete.

Many Israel firms have expressed interest in buying Vietnamese cashew, tuna, frozen shrimp, squid, beverage, garment, footwear, consumer goods, and dried fruits.

Notably, footwear shipments to Israel in the seven-month period surged 31.8 per cent year on year. Besides, Vietnamese rice and shrimp have gained a firm foothold in the market. However, exports of seafood tapered off 32 per cent as Israel started strengthening food safety measures on imports at the end of 2018. — VNS