The Ho Chi Minh City Investment and Trade Promotion Center (ITPC) yesterday organized a conference to summarize work in 2023 and deploy tasks in 2024.
In 2023, ITPC welcomed and worked with more than 236 domestic and foreign delegations that came to find out the business investment environment and discuss trade and investment promotion activities, an increase of 127 percent compared to 2022. ITPC also organized 208 domestic and foreign trade and investment promotion activities, an increase of 63 percent compared to 2022.
Through trade promotion activities in 2023, the Center supported 2,205 businesses with 1,159 booths to display their products, attracting a total of 722,122 visitors.
In particular, domestic promotion activities attracted 1,944 participating businesses with 917 booths. Programs of international promotion brought high efficiency, attracting more than 550,000 visitors, and bringing in more than VND333 billion (US$13,616,645) in revenue with 420 minutes and 467 signed contracts.
During the year, ITPC organized 19 government and business dialogue conferences, attracting 3,777 participant businesses, including 2,311 domestic enterprises and 1,466 foreign-invested enterprises. In particular, through the business dialogue website, the center’s portal has received and answered more than 492 questions from businesses in the fields of tax, customs, banking, social insurance, construction, environmental resources, science and technology, and food safety.
ITPC Director Tran Phu Lu said that in 2024, ITPC planned to expand and diversify export markets. In particular, it will reduce the dependence upon one or a limited number of geographical destinations for exports to limit risks from market fluctuations as well as regional and world economic and political factors. At the same time, it will gradually expand the city's export market share in traditional markets including the United States, China, the European Union, Southeast Asia countries, and Northeast Asian countries (Japan, Korea).
Last but not least, ITPC will promote trade promotion activities, creating a breakthrough in penetrating new, potential export markets such as Australia, Canada, India, the Middle East, Latin America and Africa while promoting the export of Halal products to Muslim markets.
Regarding the orientation of key products in trade promotion, trade promotion activities for the city's key and potential industrial products especially green and circular products such as prefabricated metal products; electrical equipment; Food Processing; drinks; electronic equipment - information technology; products from rubber - plastic; software products, digital content products; agricultural - forestry - fishery product group; textile and garment - leather and footwear group will be given high priority.
Speaking at the conference, Vice Chairman of Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee Nguyen Van Dung suggested that ITPC in the coming time continue to pay attention to the promotion of digital transformation, trade and investment promotion activities to contribute to the economic transformation of Ho Chi Minh City’s green and sustainable orientation. He also noted the effectiveness of trade and investment promotion activities as well as training the team to meet task requirements.
At the conference, ITPC also signed a memorandum of cooperation with industry associations and media and press units in trade and investment promotion in the coming time.
Regarding investment promotion activities in the coming time, ITPC revealed it is focusing on calling for investment from the United States in the fields of semiconductor chips, science-technology, renewable energy, green growth and circular economy while it is attracting Japanese investors in the development of transportation infrastructure, electronics, manufacturing industry, renewable energy, and high-tech healthcare.
ITPC is also appealing to Korean investors in the field of smart urban and infrastructure development, high-tech electronics manufacturing, semiconductors, new energy, research and development, and innovation and Singaporean investors in green economy, digital economy, information technology, clean energy and green energy transition, innovation, industrial and urban infrastructure, finance and real estate and Indian investors in information technology, innovation, digital transformation, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, renewable energy.
