Domestic companies must improve product quality if they want to enter EU market. – Photo wineaustralia.com

HA NOI (VNS) — The Viet Nam-European Union Free Trade Agreement, which is expected to be signed soon, will provide Vietnamese businesses with huge opportunities to deeply penetrate the German market.

Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Tuan Anh gave this forecast even as he warned that domestic companies needed to pay more attention to product quality if they wanted to be competitive in such a lucrative market.

When the agreement is signed, product quality will become the key competitive factor as Germany is a demanding market with complicated supervising systems for imported goods, revealed Anh.

He called on businesses to conduct a thorough study of the German market, adjust their business strategies and focus on diversifying product design as well as developing trademarks for their goods.

According to the ministry's Import-Export Department, Germany is Viet Nam's biggest trade partner in the EU bloc, with two-way trade recording an average growth rate of 15 per cent annually. The trade topped more than US$7.69 billion in 2013 and $6.47 billion in the past 10 months. Of the total, Vietnamese exports contributed $4.19 billion. These include telephones and components, garments and textiles, computers and electronics products, as well as seafood, bags and suitcases.

However, Vietnamese exports now accounted for a modest 0.2 per cent of German market demand, trade experts said, adding that there remained untapped opportunities for Vietnamese goods to enter the market.

They suggested that Vietnamese businesses thoroughly explore their German partners before signing economic contracts, as well as craft long-term business strategies and ensure the adequate supply of commodities to meet large orders. — VNS