Hanoi (VNA) – A number of Vietnamese firms reached partnership deals withMyanmar companies during the Vietnam-Myanmar Trade-Services-Tourism Fair 2017 inYangon, as part of their market research trip lasting two weeks, according to Sai Gon Giai phong (Liberated Saigon) onApril 24.

Luan ThuyDuong, Vietnamese Ambassador to Myanmar, spoke highly of the outcomes of thetrip and committed to supporting Vietnamese enterprises in the country.

She urgedState agencies to offer more trade promotion programmes to bring moreVietnamese goods to Myanmar and to connect well-established and domestic firms.

VietnameseCommercial Counselor in Myanmar Vo Thi Ngoc Diep said trade between the two countriessoared 26 percent yearly to 548.3 million USD last year, 461.9 million USD ofwhich was Vietnam’s exports, up 22 percent annually.

Vietnamleapt from the 10th last year to seventh place in February 2017 among49 countries and territories investing in Myanmar with 14 projects with totalregistered capital of more than 2 billion USD, five of them were wholly-ownedby Vietnam and the remaining were joint-ventures with Myanmar businesses, accordingto the Directorate of Investment and Company Administration of Myanmar.

Vietnam hasopened 138 representative offices, company branches, joint-ventures andwholly-owned firms in Myanmar. Meanwhile, no Myanmar investor has been licensedto do business in Vietnam.

Apart fromseeking consumer goods distributors, Vietnamese businesses also want partnerscapable of bringing electrical appliances, construction materials and equipmentto construction works and factories.

Mechanical engineeringfirms such as Hong Ky, Nhon Hoa, Quy Phuc, Nhat Linh and Robot introduced theirlatest products at the fair.

Duringtheir trip to Pro 1, CT Mart supermarket chain or Zuzana and Bago wholesalemarkets in Myanmar, they found out that Vietnamese goods are competing wellwith goods from China, Thailand and Malaysia.

Myanmarconsumers are snapping up made-in-Vietnam products such as Kangaroo householdappliances, LIOA electrical devices, Hong Ky machines and Senko electric fans.

Cao DuyThinh, Executive Director of Hoang Anh Gia Lai Group, suggested seeking partnersand inviting them to factories, adding that firms should choose large-scale andprestigious distributors to avoid risks when signing contracts.-VNA