Vietnam was one of the few Asian countries that did not experience an economic contraction during the coronavirus pandemic in 2020 and 2021, it said. This year, the country’s GDP is expected to grow by around 5.5 percent, according to the World Bank.
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Production of footwear for exports to the E.U. |
German automotive supplier Brose, which has 11 factories in China, is currently deciding between Thailand and Vietnam for a new production location.
In December, Denmark's Lego announced it will build a 1 billion USD factory near the southern business hub of Ho Chi Minh City, one of the largest European investment projects in Vietnam to date.
It quoted Daniel Müller, manager at the German Asia-Pacific Business Association, as saying: "It currently looks as if, in particular, medium-sized companies are increasingly striving to enter the Vietnam market.”
Vietnam has become a more attractive destination for investors, Raphael Mok, head of Asia Country Risk at Fitch Solutions, told DW.
The article noted the E.U. and Vietnam ratified a free-trade agreement in 2020, which included an investment pact, the E.U.-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA). Bilateral trade rose to 49 billion EUR in 2021, up from 20.8 billion in 2012, the year talks began over the E.U.-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA).
A report by Germany Trade & Invest, a research and advisory platform, points out that these pacts also give European firms easier access to public procurements in Vietnam.
Source: VNA