Vietnamese firms should intensify their trading and investing activities in Myanmar, as trade and investment have failed to maximize the potential of the two countries, according to the deputy head of the Ho Chi Minh City branch of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI).

Myanmar is considered a very promising market when the ASEAN Economic Community is formed by the end of this year, giving Vietnamese firms an advantage to boost trade and investment within the ASEAN bloc, Nguyen The Hung, vice director of the VCCI branch, said at a conference in Ho Chi Minh City to promote investment and trade in the Myanmarese market on Thursday last week.

ASEAN members include Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam.

In the first quarter of 2015, Vietnam’s exports to Myanmar reached US$85 million, while imports from the country were worth over $17.1 million.

By the end of this year, two-way trade is expected to top $500 million, while the inflow of foreign investment to Myanmar from Vietnamese enterprises is forecast to exceed $1 billion, Hung said.

In 2014, exports from Vietnam to Myanmar reached $345.9 million, up 51.8 percent compared with 2013, while imports from Myanmar hit $134.8 million, up 9.1 percent from the same period of the previous year, Hung said, citing figures from Vietnam Customs.

Vietnam’s shipments to Myanmar have gradually increased since 2011, rising 67 percent in that year, 42 percent in 2012, and 90 percent in 2013.

Moreover, Vietnamese exports to the Myanmarese market have two positive characteristics: the ranking of Vietnam has steadily improved and more kinds of Vietnamese goods have penetrated that market, the vice director said.

Besides traditional export items like steel, machinery and equipment, plastic materials and products, garments and ceramic products; Vietnamese food and processed food, cement and clinker have been accepted by local customers.

Myanmar is now a target market of Vietnamese manufacturers in many sectors, such as fertilizers, household and home appliances, cosmetics, building materials, pharmaceuticals and retail.

Vietnam is considered among the 10 largest trading partners of Myanmar, ranked in ninth place at the end of 2014. The country is among the top 30 foreign investors, with eight projects worth a total value of $700 million.

This number is expected to rise to $1.5 billion by the end of this year, Hung, the VCCI branch vice director, added.

The potential sectors for foreign direct investment are very diverse, given the fact that Myanmar’s economy has been open to the global market for four years.

Among many fields, like banking-financial-insurance services, aviation, power generation, industrial tree plantations, construction material manufacturing, real estate and oil exploration and exploitation, Vietnam has an edge in telecoms and seafood and agro-product processing.

In addition, Vietnam has around 300 businesses with affiliate or representative offices in Myanmar.

Besides, the government of Myanmar is encouraging foreign companies to invest in media and broadcasting, Hung quoted Minister of Information of Myanmar U Ye Htut as saying during his visit to Vietnam earlier this year.

Myanmar is expecting the participation of Vietnamese enterprises in this market, as they can contribute up to 30 percent of capital in the field of media, a 95 percent stake in publishing, and up to 100 percent in education and training, especially in English teaching, Hung added.

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