China’s reopening good news for Vietnamese exporters

Speaking at a recent trade promotion forum, he opined that China’s dismantling of its Covid-19 lockdowns had given a big push to bilateral trade, with Vietnamese exports to China in February rising by 33% month-on-month.

The Mong Cai-Dongxing Border Gate was immediately reopened after the good news came in, leading to scores of traders flocking to the gate to look for Chinese partners.

The gate plays a prominent role in bilateral trade because it commercially connects Quang Ninh province with China’s Guangxi province. The latter is the third-largest importer of Vietnamese seafood, importing 75% of its annual fishery consumption.

To Van Quang, vice chairman of the Vietnam-China Business Association in Guangxi, mentioned his Dong Dang Industrial Investment Company, which was pushing hard for a Vietnamese seafood trading centre in Fangchenggang City.

He said its efforts have paid off as 600,000 tonnes of cold storeage warehouse are being built by the municipal authorities. Once finished, the warehouse would allow Vietnamese seafood to enter China in larger quantities and with lower lead times.

He also revealed that the company plans to import 35,000 tonnes of durians, 120,000 tonnes of purple sweet potatoes, and certain quantities of seafood to China this year.

Tran Thi Bich Ngoc, head of the Management Board, Mong Cai International Border Gate, estimated that Vietnamese agricultural and fishery exports to China via the gate grew by around 60% year by year.