Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Le Duong Quang called for strengthening Paki-Vietnam friendship, especially in trade and investment terms.
Speaking at the Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) during his visit on Wednesday, the Vietnamese minister hoped that the second session of Pak-Vietnam Business Council would help strengthen business cooperation between the two countries as well as gather Vietnamese counterparts that are interested in expanding business in Pakistan. Ambassador of Vietnam to Pakistan Nguyen Viet Hung and Commercial Counsellor Embassy of Vietnam Nguyen Hong Tian were also present on the occasion.
The Deputy Minister termed the current bilateral trade between Vietnam and Pakistan very low and said that efforts should be made to enhance annual volume of trade between the two countries by 2013. He said that Vietnam would also provide support to Pakistan in getting market access to the South East Asian states. He said that the Trade Promotion Agency of Vietnam and the Trade Development Authority of Pakistan should collaborate and sign mutual agreements for the promotion of trade and economic relations between the two countries.
ICCI President Yassar Sakhi Butt, in his welcome address, said that it was encouraging that Pakistan and Vietnam were now moving forward to further strengthen their bilateral economic and trade relations as the two countries had great potential to enhance mutual cooperation in various sectors of their economies. The ICCI President said that bilateral trade between Pakistan and Vietnam had improved from US$60 million in 2005-06 to US$262.5 million in 2010-11, however, it was far below their true potential. He said that both the countries had good potential to complement each other in different areas, including science & technology, IT & telecommunication, industry, banking & finance, health & pharmaceuticals, agriculture, livestock, fisheries, education and culture.
