UK joins CPTPP: “New wind” boosts Vietnam’s trade

Dual benefits

On December 15, the UK became the first European country to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

Thus, from December 15, CPTPP officially took effect for the UK and 8 member countries including: Japan, Singapore, Chile, New Zealand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Peru, Brunei. When joining CPTPP, more than 99% of current UK goods exported to CPTPP members will be exempted from tariffs.

The UK's participation in the CPTPP marks a new chapter in economic and trade relations between countries in the region in general and between Vietnam and the UK in particular, opening up opportunities to increase trade, attract investment and promote cooperation in many fields.

The UK's participation in the CPTPP marks a new chapter in economic and trade relations between countries in the region in general and between Vietnam and the UK in particular. Photo: Thanh Chung

Informing about this extremely important event, British Ambassador to Vietnam Iain Few said that by joining CPTPP, the UK is committed to becoming a proactive and trustworthy member. Vietnam is the gateway to Southeast Asia and an important ally of the UK in addressing global challenges such as climate change and enhancing economic resilience.

Ambassador Iain Few reaffirmed that the UK is committed to working closely with the Vietnamese Government to help Vietnamese businesses and British investors take advantage of the benefits brought about by the Vietnam – UK Free Trade Agreement (UKVFTA) and the CPTPP in the future.

Assessing the positive impacts on Vietnam's cooperation activities with partners when the UK joined the CPTPP, Mr. Vu Viet Thanh - Department of European - American Markets (Ministry of Industry and Trade) said that in recent times, the UK has maintained very good relations with countries in the Indo-Pacific region, especially member countries in the CPTPP Agreement, including Vietnam.

According to a recent report released by the UK in August, the UK forecasts that joining the CPTPP will help the UK economy increase its domestic GDP by an average of about 2 billion pounds per year, of which, UK exports to CPTPP member countries will also increase by 2.6 billion pounds, while imports will also increase by 2.3 billion pounds compared to the scenario without this agreement.

Thus, when the UK is also a member of CPTPP and with the very positive impacts from the UKVFTA, it will create dual benefits between the two agreements, creating new growth momentum in bilateral relations, and opening up new development space in potential fields.

Take advantage of opportunities to boost exports

Regarding the potential for trade cooperation between Vietnam and the UK, Mr. Ngo Chung Khanh - Deputy Director of the Multilateral Trade Policy Department (Ministry of Industry and Trade) also said that the UK is a very important partner for Vietnam, so the UK's accession to the CPTPP will create more markets for Vietnam.

In addition, during the negotiation process with Vietnam, an agreement was reached with the UK in the direction that the UK will open more market access for Vietnam in addition to existing bilateral FTAs, especially the seafood industry will have great advantages when the commitment officially comes into effect.

“ This is a bright spot of the CPTPP Agreement, along with many large economies also interested in and wanting to join this agreement (such as China...) showing that the role of the CPTPP Agreement is growing stronger and creating new motivations for businesses and investors to pay more attention to CPTPP members, especially Vietnam ” - Mr. Ngo Chung Khanh commented.

Not only seafood, many of Vietnam's strong agricultural products also have much room for growth when this Agreement comes into effect with the UK. Photo: Duong Giang

Not only seafood, many of Vietnam's key agricultural products also have room for growth when this Agreement comes into effect with the UK. Within the framework of CPTPP, the UK commits to giving Vietnam a tariff quota that will gradually increase from 3,300 tons/year in the first year to 17,500 tons/year from the 8th year (ie 2030) onwards (with a tariff rate of 0%), nearly double the rice quota that the UK commits to for other CPTPP countries.

The UK also committed to allocating quotas on a “ first come, first served ” basis and not requiring administrative procedures such as issuing rice variety certificates as in previous bilateral FTAs.

Another noteworthy point is that along with joining the CPTPP, the UK has officially recognized Vietnam as a market economy. This is very favorable for our country in trade defense investigations, especially anti-dumping investigations. With this result, Vietnam's export goods will not be discriminated against and will be subject to more reasonable anti-dumping tax rates.

However, economic experts say that opportunities always come with challenges. Therefore, to promote sustainable exports to the UK market, Mr. Vu Viet Thanh recommends that businesses need to look up and carefully study information about the UK market through the official website of the UK Department of Business and Trade or through the social networking platforms of this department. Along with that, the domestic business community can find information on the Free Trade Agreements Portal (FTAP) built and operated by the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

Along with finding information and accessing the market, domestic export enterprises also need to improve their competitiveness by improving product quality, strictly controlling the entire production process, ensuring traceability, and ensuring food hygiene and safety.

More importantly, the representative of the European-American Market Department said that enterprises need to promote the linkage of production and supply chains from production to consumption and export. From there, upgrade production and export capacity to participate more deeply in the supply chains of foreign enterprises and partners, promote exports and enhance position.

Source: https://congthuong.vn/anh-gia-nhap-cptpp-luong-gio-moi-thuc-day-thuong-mai-viet-nam-vuong-quoc-anh-364396.html