The Tinh Bien trade zone has received preferential tax policies, including exemptions on import-export tariffs, value added taxes (VAT) and special consumption taxes to boost exports to neighbouring Cambodia, said the southwestern border province’s representatives at a press briefing in Phnom Penh on August 18.

The zone, which first went into operation in early 2009, has attracted 43 investors so far.

The President of the Vietnamese High Quality Products Club, Vu Kim Hanh, said Tinh Bien is one of the three border gates with Cambodia in An Giang province, which together account for 70 percent of the total two-way trade between the countries.

Two-way trade revenues between the two countries rose from US$935 million in 2006 to almost US$1.7 billion in 2008.

Economists forecast that bilateral trade will hit US$2 billion next year despite a significant annual slide of 30 percent over the first five months of the year.