In the first four months of this year, Viet Nam exported $9 billion worth of goods to the bloc, up 12 per cent year-on-year. — Photo ndh

HA NOI (Biz Hub) — Vietnamese Goods Week will be organised in Germany and France in June and September respectively, as another step towards penetrating the demanding European market.

According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade's European Market Department, approximately 20 Vietnamese firms will attend these events, showcasing products such as seafood, rice, wood products as well as textiles and garments in the supermarkets of Germany's Metro Cash&Carry and France's Casino Group.

During the events, business forums and direct meetings between the participating Vietnamese firms and the representatives of Metro Cash&Carry and Casino will also be organised, the department said.

Over the last few years, Vietnamese Goods Weeks, organised in several European countries, have created opportunities for domestic firms to advertise their products directly to the distributors in the bloc, and allowed updating of information about the EU's requirements and better understanding of the consumers' tastes and demands there.

Vietnamese Trade Counsellor in Germany Nguyen Thien Binh said that the Vietnamese Goods Weeks organised there earlier helped many Vietnamese products such as vegetables, fruits and dry goods, to enter the Metro Cash&Carry supermarket chain.

During a recent conference in HCM City, head of the department Dang Hoang Hai advised Vietnamese firms to work directly with and export their products to the EU supermarkets.

Once their products entered these chains, he said, they could enter other distribution channels there.

According to the department, the EU is one of Viet Nam's important export markets. Last year, the bilateral trade reached $33.6 billion, a yearly increase of 16 per cent, of which Viet Nam's exports accounted for $24.4 billion.

In the first four months of this year, Viet Nam exported $9 billion worth of goods to the bloc, up 12 per cent year-on-year.

Viet Nam mainly exports apparel, footwear, coffee, furniture and seafood to the EU, while the EU exports machinery, medicines, aircraft, equipment and vehicles to Viet Nam. — VNS