Chinese investors are looking to relocate manufacturing to Vietnam to avail themselves of the country’s favourable investment conditions.

According to Gao Ziu Zhi, chairman of the Tianjin Furniture Association, Chinese furniture manufacturers are looking to relocate manufacturing to Vietnam to deal with their rising domestic labour costs at home.

Meanwhile, Vietnam offers lower labour costs, coupled with tariff reductions brought by a multitude of free trade agreements, making the country an ideal destination for Chinese exporters.

She noted that Tianjin city is home to 7,000 furniture companies, 3,000 of which are furniture manufactuers. Several company members under the Tianjin Furniture Association are planning to explore Vietnam in the coming time. Most of these are large-scale companies with major export markets.

On the same note, Geng Wei, chairman of the Tianjin Foreign Economic and Trade Promotion Association, said that, “Vietnam is a promising market for Chinese firms to expand operations in the fields of furniture manufacturing, wood processing, and bike making. Chinese firms are interested in co-operating with Vietnamese counterparts to transport and import tropical agricultural products and fruits through official channels.”

Several Chinese companies have gathered at Vietnam Expo 2017 held in Ho Chi Minh City last week to explore the market. The expo, organised alongside with Vietnam Hardware & Hand Tools 2017, is a major trade promotion channel between Vietnam and other countries like China, South Korea, Japan, India, and Singapore.

According to Vo Tan Thanh, director of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Ho Chi Minh City, China and Vietnam see sound development of ties in the field of trade, investment, and tourism. China is the largest trade partner of Vietnam, while Vietnam is China’s ninth largest trade partner in the world and the largest in the ASEAN.

Bilateral trade between the two countries came to an estimated $73.3 billion in the first 10 months of 2017, up 27.2 per cent against 2016. China was the fourth largest investor in Vietnam during this time, with 244 investment projects with a total investment capital sum of $1.6 billion.

VIR