US trade chief begins talks with Vietnam

FE Team | Published: November 06, 2007 00:00:00 | Updated: February 01, 2018 00:00:00

HANOI, Nov 5 (Agencies): US Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez began trade talks today in Vietnam, a former war enemy whose Communist government has been steadily opening the country up to outside investment.
He was welcomed by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, who hailed the growing business links between the onetime foes less than a year after the United States cleared the way for Vietnam to join the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
"I'm very happy to see that US relations with Vietnam have developed well while investments between the two countries have developed sustainably, bringing about benefits for both sides," the prime minister said.
"I strongly believe this visit will help promote bilateral cooperation in all fields especially in trade and investment."
Gutierrez is heading a trade delegation of 23 companies, including US giants Ford Motor, Dow Chemical, aluminium firm Alcoa and Northwest Airlines.
"Vietnam is a growing economy with excellent opportunities for our American manufacturers, businesses and workers," Gutierrez said when his trip was first announced.
"These companies can make vital contacts and acquire information to allow them to prosper in the Vietnamese market, increasing exports and creating higher paying jobs for our workers at home."
Chris Muessel, the head of the US chamber of commerce in Vietnam, said trade between the two nations could reach 12 billion dollars this year, an eight-fold increase since 2001, when a bilateral trade deal went into force.
"However, US imports from Vietnam account for about 10.5 billion dollars of this total, while Vietnam imports from the US have hit a plateau at just over one billion dollars since 2003," he said.
"US exporters of goods and services to Vietnam are not yet enjoying the balance of market access opportunities that was promised when the (bilateral deal) was signed."
Ties between Hanoi and Washington have increased steadily since the end of the American trade embargo on Vietnam in 1994.
Two US presidents, Bill Clinton and George W Bush, have visited Vietnam since the two countries normalised diplomatic relations in 1995, while President Nguyen visited the United States earlier this year.
Meanwhile, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has pledged to loan Vietnam nearly 1.1 billion US dollars for the construction of the first phase of the Noi Bai-Lao Cai expressway, local newspaper Vietnam News reported today.
ADB's Ordinary Capital Resources will provide 896 million dollars, while the other 200 million dollars will come from the bank's concessional Asian Development Fund. The total amount needed for the first phase of the project is estimated to be over 1.2 billion dollars, and the remaining 120 million dollars will be met by a bond issuance.
Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung recently asked the State Bank of Vietnam to complete all related documents to prompt negotiation and signing a credit agreement with ADB.
The expressway will link Hanoi with the northern Lao Cai province bordering with China's Yunnan province, joining China's Kunming-Hekou Highway at Quang Kim commune, Bat Xat district in Lao Cai.