Ties between Vietnam and Hong Kong are strengthening, says former consul general Hoang Chi Trung
Annual trade has seen a 15 per cent increase in each of the past three years
The relationship between Vietnam and Hong Kong has strengthened rapidly, especially in trade and investment, and the two will work even more closely in the future, says Hoang Chi Trung, former consul general in Hong Kong who returns to Vietnam this month after three years in the city.
“Vietnam and Hong Kong have close relationship, not only geographically, but also in the way of life, and people in the two places have been doing business for centuries,” he says.
Trung says Vietnam is Hong Kong’s largest trade partner in commodities among Asean (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) countries.
Annual trade between Vietnam and Hong Kong – which totalled US$17 billion in 2016 – has seen a 15 per cent increase in each of the past three years. Hong Kong imports electronic products, smartphones, electrical appliances, computers, garments, shoes, seafood, rice and vegetables from Vietnam.
Trung says investors from Hong Kong have been active in the hotel, garment, and real estate industries in Vietnam. Chow Tai Fook Enterprises is investing more than US$5 billion in building a major resort and casino project in Quang Nam province over the next two years.
