There is great potential for Viet Nam and New Zealand to further strengthen cooperation in terms of trade, industry and investment, said Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Phan Thi Thang at the 8th meeting of the Viet Nam-New Zealand Joint Trade and Economic Commission (JTEC) held in Ha Noi on Tuesday.

Co-chaired by Thang and Deputy Secretary for Foreign Affairs and Trade of New Zealand Vangelis Vitalis, the meeting focused on reviewing bilateral cooperation in trade, investment, agriculture, education and training, tourism, aviation, and labour.

The two sides applauded the efforts and close cooperation between ministries and sectors of both sides in implementing agreements on economic and trade cooperation signed by the two countries' leaders.

Trade between Viet Nam and New Zealand has grown strongly since the two countries established the comprehensive partnership in 2009, with an annual average growth rate of 14.2 per cent.

Viet Nam is now New Zealand's 13th largest trade partner. The two-way trade hit US$1.2 billion in 2022, up 14 per cent year-on-year.

New Zealand has 39 valid direct investment projects in Viet Nam with a total registered capital of over $209.7 million, ranking 39th among 143 countries and territories investing in Viet Nam.

Meanwhile, Viet Nam has 11 investment projects worth $38.4 million in New Zealand, mainly in the fields of processing and manufacturing industry, wholesale and retail, and accommodation service.

The two sides agreed to strengthen bilateral cooperation in trade, investment and economy, including multilateral trade negotiations, agriculture and agribusiness, clean technology, development of agricultural supply chain, education, aviation and tourism.

Viet Nam and New Zealand set a goal to lift their trade turnover to $2 billion by 2024.

Both sides welcomed the completion of the market opening process for Viet Nam's lime and pomelo, and New Zealand's squash and strawberry in late last year.

The Vietnamese side suggested relevant ministries, sectors and agencies of New Zealand closely coordinate, and provide detailed instructions on procedures to facilitate businesses of the two countries to tap the new import-export opportunity.

Discussing cooperation in multilateral frameworks, the two sides agreed to continue to coordinate and support each other in mechanisms and frameworks such as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Agreement, the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (AANZFTA), and the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) forum. — VNS