China-ASEAN Expo creates new spaces for Vietnamese enterprises

Attending China-ASEAN Expo (CAEXPO) and China-ASEAN Business and Investment Summit (CABIS) are among efforts to create new spaces for Vietnamese enterprises in the development process, according to Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh.
"CAEXPO and CABIS are practical opportunities for enterprises to meet and exchange. Many cooperation contracts were signed at events like these," the website of Vietnamese government quoted Minh as saying on Friday.
Minh took part in the 11th CAEXPO and CABIS in China's Nanning, capital of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region from Sunday to Tuesday at the invitation of the government of China and the leaders of Guangxi.
Vietnam has attended CAEXPO events with the highest number of enterprises among ASEAN members. Over 100 Vietnamese firms from 21 localities nationwide have joined the 2014 event from Tuesday to Friday.
For Vietnam, as many as 120 million U.S. dollars worth of trade agreements were reached during the previous CAEXPO in 2013. Vietnamese enterprises had chances to work with some 50,000 businessmen from China and other ASEAN members.
The active participation of Vietnamese government and enterprises in such cooperation mechanisms will contribute gradually to bringing Vietnam to become an important factor in the network connecting East Asia and the world, Minh said.
Via economic cooperation, attending CAEXPO and CABIS also created opportunities for Vietnam to strengthen friendship and mutual understanding between border localities of Vietnam and China's Guangxi, Minh added.
The Vietnamese official said with geographical advantages, trade turnover between Vietnam and Guangxi accounted for some 70 percent of the total trade revenue between Guangxi and ASEAN.
Leaders and people from Vietnam and Guangxi want to further strengthen cooperation with each other, Minh said, adding that " After a field trip on land route and witnessing the bustling activities at the events, I found that the potential for cooperation between the two sides remains huge."
"In the coming time, the two sides should promote connection in infrastructure, simplify procedures and create favorable conditions for exchanges of commodities and services," Minh proposed.
CAEXPO and CABIS are the two events that highlight the strategic partnership between ASEAN and China. After 10 years, CAEXPO and CABIS have become a bridge connecting trade and investment cooperation between businesses of ASEAN and China, Minh said.
Recognizing the importance and benefits of CAEXPO, Vietnamese ministry of industry and trade, ministry of foreign affairs and other relevant agencies actively prepared and supported enterprises to participate in the event.
"This is considered as a specific economic diplomacy activity in which Vietnamese government closely coordinated with enterprises to promote national image, connect partners, and expand market for Vietnamese commodities and services," said the Vietnamese official.