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V
IETNAM
B
RIEFING
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7
Vietnamsits in a prime position in Asia vis-à-vis free trade agreements
(FTAs) and trade organizationmemberships. Very fewother countries
in the region are included in such a plethora of trade agreements.
See below for a visual representation of Vietnam’s position.
Looking briefly at the key FTAs for Vietnam, if they were all to be
ratified then Vietnam would have FTAs in place with the world’s
three largest economies, as well as five more economies within the
top fifteen in GDP. By joining all of these agreements, Vietnam is
positioning itself to become a key hub for future global commerce.
If successfully ratified, the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) will
significantly decrease trade barriers between the U.S. and Vietnam.
The TPP comprises a region with US$28 trillion in economic output,
making up around 39 percent of the world’s total output. The
agreement will remove tariffs on almost US$2 trillion in goods and
services exchanged between the signatory countries. If enacted,
the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) would
provide Vietnam with tariff free access to China, India, Australia,
Japan, and South Korea. The EU-Vietnam FTA will cut at least 90
percent of the tariff lines on Vietnamese exports to the EU.
ASEAN is made up of Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia,
Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.
Collectively, ASEAN represents a market of some 600million people,
with a combined GDP of about US$2.5 trillion and upwards of US$1.5
trillion in trade flowing throughout the region. Vietnam is well
located geographically to take advantage of this market.
Vietnam has recently signed the following FTA deals: the Vietnam-
Korea Free Trade Agreement and the Vietnam-Customs Union of
Russia, Belarus, and Kazakhstan Free Trade Agreement.
Vietnam is also currently studying the potential benefits of a number
of other FTAs, such as the East Asia Free Trade Area (ASEAN +3) and
the Comprehensive Economic Partnership for East Asia.
Vietnam’s Trade Position
in Asia in 2015
– By
Alberto Vettoretti, Managing Partner, Vietnam
Papua New Guinea
Vietnam
Canada
Chile
Mexico
Peru
Hong Kong
Taiwan
Russia
United States
Brunei
Malaysia
Singapore
Indonesia
Philippines
Thailand
Cambodia
Laos
Myanmar
India
China
Korea
New Zeland
Australia
Japan
RCEP
TPP
ASEAN
APEC
APEC
(Asia-Paci c Economic Cooperation);
TPP
(Trans-Paci c Partnership);
RCEP
(Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership);
ASEAN
(Association of Southeast Asian Nations).