During the signing of two agreements on maritime cooperation, Vietnam and the Philippines also took time to discuss increasing trade between the nations. The alliance formed to counter Chinese aggression in the South China Sea is a fantastic basis for increasing trade between the two nations which has much room to improve. Vietnam is the Philippines' 11th largest trading partner and 5th largest in ASEAN.
During the same meetings to discuss maritime cooperation to counter Chinese aggression in the South China Sea, the Philippines and Vietnam also agreed to explore trade expansion.
Seeing the tremendous trade opportunities between Vietnam and the Philippines, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. said Tuesday (1/30/24) that his government will work to expand bilateral trade with the Southeast Asian neighbor to $10 billion by exploring untapped resources.
“On trade and investments, I can see many, many opportunities for our two countries to explore. The Philippines is committed to enhancing and fortifying our economic, trade, and investment ties with Vietnam... Our objective is to expand our bilateral trade which stands at just about $7 billion today to expand that to $10 billion by exploring untapped resources. And in time hopefully the balance between our imports and exports will move to a more equitable ratio." - President Marcos of the Philippines to Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh in Hanoi.
There is much room to grow given that Vietnam is the Philippines' eleventh-largest trading partner and fifth-largest in ASEAN. Growth in trade and investment will occur only if trade and investment procedures are streamlined, trade barriers reduced, and transparency cultivated. Vietnam has been on a nearly two-decade ascent, whereas the Philippines is in many ways just getting started. The Philippines had a 5.9 percent growth of GDP in Q3 2023 making it one of the strongest in ASEAN.
The total trade between the Philippines and Vietnam amounted to $6.18 billion in 2022, with exports valued at $1.72 billion and imports at $4.46 billion. The $2.74 billion balance of trade is in favor of Vietnam. The main exports to Vietnam are electrical machinery and equipment and parts; copper and articles; nuclear reactors, boilers, machinery and mechanical appliances, and parts; plastics and articles; as well as fertilizers. Among the main imports from Vietnam are cereals; electrical machinery and equipment and parts thereof; iron and steel; salt, Sulphur, and Stine; plastering materials, lime, and cement; and miscellaneous edible preparations.
