Covering 1,500 sq.m, Longdan Milton Keynes is the first supermarket outside London of Longdan. Photo: Vietnam Finance

Covering 1,500 sq.m, Longdan Milton Keynes is the first supermarket outside London of Longdan and is included in the firm’s plan to expand its distribution network to introduce goods of Vietnam and Asia in general to consumers across the UK, VietnamPlus said on February 3.

Longdan General Director Huynh Xuan Long said with good-quality agricultural products like rice and fresh fruit, Vietnam has potential to expand its market in the UK.

He suggested Vietnamese businesses satisfy requirements on food safety and pay more heed to brand building in the demanding market.

Longdan has about 10 supermarkets specialising in Asian products, of which Vietnamese products make up about 30%. Photo: VNA

With its over 20-year experience in the UK, Longdan would support Vietnamese exporters to promote their products in the country through its supermarket chain, he said.

Also present at the opening ceremony, Vietnamese Ambassador to the UK Nguyen Hoang Long expressed his hope that Longdan will help Vietnamese enterprises boost exports to the UK, not only in Longdan supermarkets but also in other supermarket chains in the European nation.

Longdan has about 10 supermarkets specialising in Asian products, of which Vietnamese products make up about 30%. Its supermarkets import about 2,000 tonnes of Vietnamese goods each year.

Nearly US$4.5 billion in trade surplus

Trade between Vietnam and the UK reached over $6 billion as of November 2021, up 17% year on year, with Vietnam enjoying surplus of $4.46 billion, the General Department of Vietnam Customs reported.

According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, this was a miracle amid the Covid-19 pandemic when the market demand dropped and the container crisis prolonged.

The ministry attributed the results to the Vietnam-UK Free Trade Agreement (UKVFTA), which took effect temporarily from January 1, 2021 and officially from May 1, 2021.

Specifically, in the first 11 months of 2021, Vietnam earned $5.24 billion from exporting goods to the UK. Strong rise was seen in exports of steel, rubber, farm produce, rattan products, peppercorn and pottery products.

Meanwhile, Vietnam imported over $778 million worth of goods from the UK, up 27.3% year on year, mostly metal, telephones and accessories, garment and textile materials, leather and footwear, medicine and completely-built-up cars.

Workers at a textile factory in Vietnam's southern province of Long An, February 2020. Photo: VnExpress

Under the UKVFTA, the UK will abolish import taxes on 99.2% of tariff lines within six years, equivalent to 99.7% of export turnover of Vietnam to the country.

While the EU has committed to giving Vietnam a tariff rate quota (TRQ) with an import tax of 0% for some products, the UK. said it will consult EU statistics on bilateral trade between Vietnam and the UK in the 2014-2016 period to come up with a similar policy. The UK also commits to review and increase the TRQ amount for Vietnam's rice products after three years from the day the UKVFTA takes effect.

Export industries expected to benefit greatly from this agreement include seafood, rice, textiles, wood, vegetables and footwear, according to VnExpress.

In return, Vietnam will remove 48.5% of tariff lines, accounting for 64.5% of import turnover as soon as the agreement comes into effect. After six years, 91.8% of tariff lines will have been abolished, equivalent to 97.1% of the import turnover, and this will further increase to 98.3% of the tariff lines (accounting for 99.8% of the turnover).

In addition, the agreement also includes commitments on rules of origin, customs and trade facilitation, food hygiene and safety measures, and on technical barriers to trade and services, investment, trade defense, competition, state-owned firms, government procurement, and intellectual property./.

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