Vietnam, Chile Begin Fourth Round of FTA Negotiation

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Oct. 1 – Vietnam and Chile began the fourth round of free trade negotiations in Chilean capital of Santiago on Monday.

“At this stage, we expect to move ahead on the issues related to the first negotiation stage”, the Chilean authorities said.

Chili views Vietnam as great potential market for foreign investment. “The agreement will open up many opportunities for Chilean products to enter the Vietnamese market as the two economies are complementary,” said Rodrigo Contreras, the director of international economic affairs of the Chilean Foreign Ministry.

Bilateral trade between Vietnam and Chile grew 9 percent in 2008 to US$177.379 million, according to the statistic from Chile’s Export Promotion Bureau (ProChile). Since 2002, trade between the two nations has increased eightfold.

Vietnam’s key exports to Chile include footwear, shirts, printers and coffee while the country imports bronze, fir, cod-liver oil, salmon, wine, grapes, machines and mechanical accessories and equipment from the South American nation.

With the free trade negotiations, Chile hopes to enhance its commercial strategy with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries, by turning itself into a bridge for inter-regional trade.