The monthly trade promotion conference in January for Việt Nam trade offices abroad was held by the Ministry of Industry and Trade in Hà Nội on Wednesday. — VNS Photo Hoàng Hà

Vietnam trade offices abroad need to provide information about market trends in countries and export opportunities to Việt Nam's localities, associations and businesses, so they can review production and business plans, and create appropriate trade promotion plans.

Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyễn Sinh Nhật Tân made that statement at the monthly trade promotion conference in January for Việt Nam trade offices abroad held by the Ministry of Industry and Trade in Hà Nội on Wednesday.

The conference attracted participation from Việt Nam trade offices abroad, relevant agencies and businesses from 63 provinces and cities across the country.

Speaking at the conference, Tân emphasised that the monthly conference has recorded positive feedback to contribute to overcoming difficulties in market development.

The recovery in import-export activities has been not strong, but the declining rate in exports has narrowed. Efforts to make use of opportunities from international economic integration, diversification of import-export markets, and advantages from free trade agreements (FTAs) in the past years are a base for foreign trade development in 2024.

According to the Trade Promotion Agency, Ministry of Industry and Trade, the import and export activities in 2024 still face many risks that are difficult to predict. The trend of trade protection increases, so many countries have measures to attract investment back home, and set trade barriers to promote domestic production.

Besides prices, product quality and delivery time, greening and sustainable development are requirements for suppliers to major markets such as the US, EU and Japan.

Therefore, Vietnamese export businesses must proactively grasp market information, and trade promotion is one of the most effective ways to support businesses in penetrating the market.

Vũ Bá Phú, director of the Trade Promotion Agency, said this year, the agency will have many international trade exhibitions for Việt Nam's key export industries as well as exhibitions on supply chains of industrial products that are held for the first time in 2024.

Phú requested the Việt Nam trade offices abroad to support for the agency, as well as organisations and businesses at home, in implementing trade promotion activities in foreign countries, and introduce reputable trade promotion events abroad to the agency, localities, associations and enterprises.

Phú also said that in 2024, the ministry will focus on three major directions in trade promotion activities, including continuing to innovate and diversify trade promotion activities.

It will expand export markets, focusing on effectively exploiting free trade agreements, and carry out digital transformation associated with green transformation in trade promotion to promote sustainable development in foreign trade activities.

In addition, the Trade Promotion Agency will carry out large-scale trade promotion activities at national and at the international level, especially in major export products sectors

It continues to take resources and support from international organisations and partners to implement technical assistance programmes for improving trade promotion capacity for the business community.

Sharing at the conference, a representative of the Department of Industry and Trade of Bình Phước Province said that the province's businesses still have difficulty accessing accurate information from foreign purchasing partners. Therefore, it is very necessary for Việt Nam trade offices abroad to provide that information for them.

Meanwhile, according to Trần Ngọc Quân, Việt Nam's Trade Counsellor in Belgium and the EU, the new EU regulations from the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) will be applied from June 2024, so export enterprises of steel, cement and fertiliser need to study the EU regulations to calculate the amount of CO2 emitted during the production process.

Similarly, the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) will also take effect in 2024, so businesses exporting coffee, wood products and rubber need to carry out non-deforestation certification procedures according to the regulations.

This year, the EU also expects to introduce Ecodesign regulations in the textile industry to limit waste in the textile and food industries. These regulations require manufacturers and exporters to transform production to meet requirements.

Furthermore, the EU is also strengthening food safety management and trade supervision, especially tax evasion cases.

To help businesses penetrate deeply into the EU market, Quân recommended businesses carefully take advantage of the Việt Nam - EU Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), now in its 4th year of implementation, as it continues to be one of the key drivers for Việt Nam's exports to the EU.

Businesses need to pay close attention to product quality, especially agricultural and aquatic products. — VNS