HCM CITY  (VNS) — Vietnamese bivalve mollusk exports to the EU are expected to face more challenges as imports have plummeted and the country faces stiff competition from other exporters, industry insiders heard at a forum this week. Le Hang, deputy director of Viet Nam Association of Seafood and Exporters and Producers (VASEP), said that imports from Italy, the UK and Spain had fallen between 15 and 35 per cent this year. The EU is Viet Nam's largest importer of bivalve mollusks, with total export value of 68 – 70 per cent.

Australia-Vietnam trade has grown very fast in recent years. The average growth rate of bilateral trade in the 2010-2014 period was nearly 10 percent and Mr Hugd Borrowman, Australian Ambassador in Vietnam forecasts that once TPP negotiations are concluded and the trade deal is implemented, Vietnam -Australia bilateral trade ties will strengthen even further. In the upcoming time, Vietnam will have to face the reduction in development aid from donors and international organizations, could you please tell us about Australia’s aid policy to Vietnam?

Expressing concern over problems being faced by domestic steelmakers due to large-scale dumping from abroad, Steel Minister Narendra Singh Tomar today said the government is looking into the issues related to import duties and Free Trade Agreements (FTA). The minister also said the government is seized of the issues impacting the steel sector and will take a decision in appropriate time, including on import duties. The industry has been demanding further hike in import duty on steel products.

Trade between Vietnam and France will benefit from the Vietnam-EU Free Trade Agreement (VEFTA) thanks to market opening and cuts in almost all taxes, said Nguyen Canh Cuong, Trade Consellor at the Vietnamese Embassy in France. 

Australia and New Zealand market access to Vietnam's livestock sector is set to force drastic changes once the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement putting the livelihoods of millions at risk. Vietnam's media says almost 10 million people depend on the livestock industry, now under threat once meat and dairy products from Australia, New Zealand and the US enter Vietnam under the TPP.

Taipei, Aug. 25 (CNA) Former U.S. Deputy Secretary of State James Steinberg expressed support for Taiwan's inclusion in the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade bloc during a security dialogue in Taipei Tuesday. It will be in the interest of not just Taiwan, but also of the region and the world as a whole, he said, while taking questions on Taiwan's bid to join the U.S.-led trade bloc for the Asia-Pacific region.

The official statements are clear: Regional leaders and policymakers want to make the 26-member Tripartite Free Trade Area (TFTA) the main stepping stone towards the gradual establishment of the Continental FTA (CFTA)comprising the 54 members of the African Union.

Peru's Ministry of Foreign Trade and Tourism (MINCETUR) organized a seminar recently to outline the benefits of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). At the seminar, it was noted that the TPP will open up a market of 805 million consumers to Peruvian companies. The agreement is currently being negotiated between countries representing 40 percent of the global economy – Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the United States, and Vietnam.

The presidential election in the United States next year could affect the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) talks, but Malaysia’s bigger concern is convincing the people that the free trade deal is good for the country. International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed said he remained hopeful that TPP, a proposed free trade agreement involving 12 countries including Malaysia, could be concluded.

China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) are aiming to complete negotiations on an expanded free trade agreement by November. In a media statement following a meeting of ASEAN economic ministers with Chinese Minister of Commerce Gao Hucheng on August 23, ministers welcomed recent progress and underscored the importance of driving forward the negotiations.