Vietnam helps boost ASEAN-Japan relations

Japan - Vietnam's leading trade partner

According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s Asia-Africa Market Department, Japan has become Vietnam's fourth largest trade partner (after China, the US and the Republic of Korea), the third biggest importer of Vietnamese goods (after the US and China), and the third largest exporter of goods to Vietnam (after China and the Republic of Korea).

The statistics showed that the bilateral trade value increased annually to reach US$40 billion in 2020, US$42.7 billion in 2021, US$47.6 billion in 2022, and more than US$41 billion in the first 11 months of 2023, the last one of which included Vietnam’s exports worth US$21.3 billion and imports worth US$19.7 billion.

The two countries’ import and export structures are complementary with each other. Vietnam mainly exports to Japan seafood, crude oil, textiles and garments, electric wires and cables, wood and wood products, computers and components, coal, and footwear of different kinds while importing from this market machinery, equipment, tools and spare parts for industrial production, electronic products and components, iron and steel and fabrics of different kinds, automobile parts, plastic raw materials, chemicals, and textile-garment, leather-footwear and metal raw materials.

Economists predict the bilateral cooperation will grow more strongly when businesses from the two countries take advantage of tax incentives of free trade agreements (FTAs) including CPTPP and RCEP, among others. With its expanding market size, growth potential, political and social stability, and increasingly high-quality workforces, Vietnam has become an attractive destination for Japanese investors.

Packaging longan for export to Japan

New driving forces

Pham Quang Hieu, Vietnamese Ambassador to Japan, assessed the Vietnamese-Japanese relations have been developing strongly and comprehensively in all fields with high political trust, and high-ranking and all-level exchanges. The two countries have upgraded their relationship to a comprehensive strategic partnership for peace and prosperity in Asia and the rest of the world since Vietnamese President Vo Van Thuong’s visit to Japan at the end of November.

Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh's working trip to Japan for attendance at the Commemorative Summit for the 50th Year of ASEAN-Japan Friendship and Cooperation and bilateral activities contributes to promoting Vietnamese-Japanese relations within the framework of the newly established comprehensive strategic partnership. The visit is expected to further strengthen bilateral cooperation in the fields of economic development, trade, investment, and labor force.

According to Ambassador Pham Quang Hieu, over the past 50 years, the relationship between ASEAN and Japan has grown comprehensively and deeply across all fields, from politics, security, economy and investment to culture, society, and development cooperation.

Japan is widely considered to be a reliable, substantive, and effective partner, as well as the second largest foreign direct investor and fourth largest trade partner of ASEAN.

Japan has also supported the solidarity, unity, and central role of ASEAN while holding many practical cooperation activities to support the building of the ASEAN Community.

The Vietnamese Prime Minister's attendance at the Commemorative Summit for the 50th Year of ASEAN-Japan Friendship and Cooperation also shows that Vietnam is a proactive and responsible member in ASEAN, and in promoting the ASEAN-Japan relations.

One of Vietnam's most outstanding contributions to promoting ASEAN-Japan relations is its successful performance as the coordinator of ASEAN-Japan relations during the 2018-2021 period.

Japan is committed to investing US$50 million in the building of the ASEAN Center for Public Health Emergencies and Emerging Diseases (ACPHEED), which was announced in 2020, the same year as Vietnam chaired ASEAN.

Ha Huong