Vietnam hopes for investment from Swedish firms: PM

Prime Ministers Nguyen Xuan Phuc (third, left) and Stefan Löfven (third, right) witness the exchange of cooperation documents at the Vietnam-Sweden business forum in Stockholm on May 27 (Photo: VNA)

Vietnam advocates institutional reform and economic restructuring, while also promoting the private sector and deep international integration, the PM told the Vietnam-Sweden business forum in Stockholm, held as part of his ongoing official visit to the European country.

He highlighted the history of their sound bilateral relations, saying that it propelled the two-way to more than 1.5 billion USD.

Sweden ranks 34th among the 130 countries and territories investing in Vietnam with 34 projects worth over 35,000 USD, he pointed out, adding that numerous multinational groups from Sweden are operating in Vietnam like ABB, Ericsson, Volvo, and Electrolux.

Besides, young Vietnamese people are familiar with Sweden’s well-known brand names and services like H&M, Spotify, Skype, and IKEA.

He briefed the participants on Vietnam’s economic development in 2018 with GDP growth of 7.1 percent, trade turnover hitting 500 billion USD, including 250 billion USD in exports, and inflation kept under 4 percent.

Vietnam has joined a series of new-generation free trade agreements and is preparing to sign the EU-Vietnam FTA (EVFTA) with the European Union.

PM Phuc expressed his wishes that the government and businesses of Sweden will support the EU’s early signing and ratification of the deal and the EU-Vietnam Investment Promotion Agreement (EVIPA) next month.

According to the PM, the pacts will serve as a firm foundation to promote trade between Vietnam and the EU, and Vietnam and Sweden in particular. Within the framework of the pacts, Vietnamese goods can access the EU distribution chain, and Swedish firms investing in Vietnam will be able to access the ASEAN market.

He hoped that via the forum, the two countries’ businesses would better understand each other towards opportunities for connectivity and cooperation, thus contributing to elevating the Vietnam-Sweden relations to a new height.

Swedish PM Stefan Löfven, for his part, expressed his wish that the EU will sign the EVFTA with Vietnam soon, thereby promoting the competitiveness of both countries.

He spoke highly of Vietnam’s socio-economic achievements over the past two decades.

The Swedish PM said the two countries’ firms are boasting great opportunities for cooperation, and Sweden has invented important solutions in smart city building, 5G technology, public transport solutions, renewable energy and power grid, IT and telecoms, air traffic flow management, waste treatment, and healthcare technology.

Sweden is ready to cooperate with Vietnam, he said, affirming that the government, people and businesses of Sweden want to further tighten relations with Vietnam over the next 50 years.

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Vietnam - Sweden diplomatic ties.

Also at the forum, the two PMs witness the signing of several cooperation documents between enterprises of Vietnam and Sweden, especially a tripartite cooperation project between Vietnam’s NutiFood and Sweden’s Backahill and the cooperative of milch cow raising farms Skånemejerier Ekonomisk Förening with the official operation of the dairy mill NutiFood Sweden AB.