Vietnam’s some key exports, including deeply processed and fresh farm produce, electronic and electric machines, would have opportunities to access the Japanese market enjoying zero-percent duty under bilateral and multilateral agreements currently in force to which Vietnam and Japan are contracting states, said Le An Hai, deputy director of the Asia-Pacific Market Department of the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT).
Rubber Enterprise__Photo: Van Khanh/VNA
He informed participants to a recent workshop on trade promotion opportunities in Japan for Vietnamese enterprises that Vietnam committed under the ASEAN-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership (AJCEP) Agreement (effective as of 2008) to remove tariff on 69 percent of the value of imports from Japan within 10 years and 82 percent within 16 years. In response, Japan would do so for 94 percent of imports from Vietnam within 10 years after the Agreement took effect. On the effective date of the Agreement, Japan eliminated 7,287 tariff lines (some 80 percent of the whole import tariffs).
The Vietnam-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (VJEPA) (effective as of 2009) even aimed at higher goals. Accordingly, within 10 years (by 2019), some 92 percent of goods will be duty-free when imported into the two countries. High trade liberalization rates (87.66 percent in Vietnam and 94.53 percent in Japan) within 10 years were also committed to by the countries.
However, he advised Vietnamese enterprises with exports to Japan to get assistance of the MOIT, Vietnamese Trade Affairs Bureau in Japan, Japan External Trade Organization, ASEAN-Japan Center and commodity line associations to enjoy the incentives provided by the said Agreements, and understand and prepare themselves for Japan’s food hygiene and safety regulations, standards and quarantine practices, local market protection mechanism and complex distribution system with high trade promotion and marketing charges.
