The event drew the attendance of officials and businessmen from both countries. The Red River Delta province of Hung Yen and the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho took this occasion to introduce their business climate and attract investment.

 

Participants discussed the Vietnam-Thailand strategic partnership, policies and projects available for foreign investors in Vietnam, as well as Thai import-export supporting policies.

 

Having highlighted cultural similarities and close geographical locations between the two countries, the participants noted that the flow of Thai investment in Vietnam is much larger than the amount of Vietnamese investment in Thailand.

 

By the end of July 2016, Thailand has been the 10th biggest foreign investor in Vietnam with 466 valid projects worth almost 9.5 billion USD. Thai projects have been present in 41 out of 63 Vietnamese provinces and cities, mostly in the sectors of processing, manufacturing, retails, construction and services.

 

Meanwhile, Vietnam has 10 projects in Thailand valued at 25.8 million USD, ranking 22nd out of 55 countries and territories investing in the country.

 

The participants stressed the need for more diplomatic-economic activities, trade and investment promotion events and market surveys that will encourage the formation of partnerships.

 

They pointed to some potential sectors for cooperation, including garment-textiles, cosmetics, foodstuff and machinery.

 

Vietnam-Thailand trade value increased to 11.5 billion USD in 2015 from 5.8 billion USD in 2009.

 

The figure hit almost 10 billion USD by the end of October 2016 and is expected to reach 20 billion USD by 2020.