The US business community has played a big part in facilitating Vietnam-US economic cooperation, Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh has said.

Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh at the virtual dialogue. Photos: Hai Minh

Minh made the statement in a virtual dialogue with the US businesses on June 30 to discuss vision and initiatives to strengthen bilateral relations. Nearly 500 US enterprises and representatives of business associations, including representatives of the US Chamber of Commerce, US-ASEAN Business Council, and Business Council for International Understanding, participated in the event.

At the dialogue, Minh said the Vietnamese Government has been mobilizing resources to realize the twin goal of both containing the pandemic and boosting economic development.

“Positive economic growth has been a result from such efforts,” added Minh, referring to a GDP growth of 2.91% in 2020 and 5.64% in the first six months of this year, while the International Monetary Fund (IMF) predicted the country’s economic expansion rate to hit 6.5% in 2021.

On the Vietnam-US relations, Minh stressed economic cooperation has been key to that link, in which two-way trade turnover rose exponentially from US$450 million in 1994 to US$90 billion in 2020.

Deputy PM Pham Binh Minh and Vice Chairman of US Chamber of Commerce Charles Freeman.

Over the past years, the US has remained Vietnam’s largest export market and was 11th out of the top 40 countries and territories having investment activities in the country with a combined registered capital of US$10 billion.

Taking into account investment capital from US firms via a third country, total foreign direct investment (FDI) to Vietnam stood at over US$14 billion, Minh noted.

“Many top US corporations are posting positive business results in Vietnam,” he added.

According to Minh, the government is willing to listen to constructive recommendations from the US businesses in terms of the business and investment environment, as well as solutions to further strengthen bilateral relations, especially in economy, trade and investment.

Overview of the dialogue.

On this occasion, the Deputy PM highly regarded the US’ commitments in donating US$4 billion for the COVAX Facility, expecting the US Government and businesses to continue supporting Vietnam accessing Covid-19 vaccine supplies and transferring technologies for vaccine production.

Representatives of US businesses expressed their impression of Vietnam’s efforts in the Covid-19 fight and economic development while noting the huge potential for cooperation between the two countries in the digital economy, infrastructure, renewables, green energy, and sustainable development.

With the close cooperation from local authorities in addressing concerns of the businesses, US firms said such a move would create more convenience for foreign investors, including those from the US, to commit long-term investment in Vietnam.