Workers sew shirts for export to EU markets at Sai Dong Garment Company in Ha Noi. — VNA/VNS Photo Tran Viet

HA NOI (Biz Hub) — Vietnamese and Swedish trade officials called on Vietnamese exporters to be proactive in making changes to boost their share in the European Union (EU) markets.

The advice came at a conference entitled "FTA EU-Viet Nam (EVFTA), rules and regulation when exporting to Sweden and the EU," which was held by the Ministry of Trade and Industry, the Swedish National Board of Trade and Sweden's Embassy in Ha Noi yesterday.

Camilla Mellander, Sweden's ambassador to Viet Nam, said that studying regulations and standards of the EU market carefully would help Vietnamese enterprises have the upper hand over other exporters.

The ambassador said Sweden appreciated Viet Nam's role in ASEAN and the country had many opportunities as an equal win-win partner with Sweden. Moreover, Vietnamese companies can co-operate with Swedish partners in search of the best solutions for the markets of both countries.

Nesti Almufti, an expert on commercial policy under the Swedish National Board of Trade, said the EU had been the second biggest importer in the world and Viet Nam had every chance to boost its exports to the market.

However, most of Vietnamese goods had low value and easily suffered the effects of fluctuation in the world market.

Vietnamese exporters should conduct more market research to find out the purchasing power, tastes and diversity of the EU market, Almufti said, and added that perception and adaptability, especially to technical barriers, were vital for success in the EU market.

Tran Ngoc Quan, deputy head of the ministry's European Market Department, said the EU was one of Viet Nam's key partners in the country's export strategy by 2020 with a vision to 2030.

He advised the business community to carefully study information to figure out possible impacts on their export products in order to work out a proactive action plan on orientating markets, seeking partners, and reforming production methods and administration associated with social responsibility and business culture.

Statistics from the ministry showed that Viet Nam's main export products to Sweden include seafood, rubber, plastic, and bags, in addition to wood and wooden products, garments, textiles and shoes. The country imported machinery, equipment, tools, and spare parts, apart from phones from Sweden.

Last year, Viet Nam imported US$240 million and exported $698 million from and to Sweden, respectively. It is expected that the two-way trade turnover would see strong growth as EVFTA comes into effects in 2018. — VNS