Bilateral economic and trade ties are one of the most crucial issues in the Vietnam-India strategic partnership, Vietnamese Trade Counselor in India Nguyen Son Ha said on Wednesday. The Counselor made the remark in an interview with Vietnam News Agency in New Delhi on November 13, during which he noted that Vietnam is India’s fourth biggest trade partner in ASEAN while India is one of Vietnam’s ten biggest trade partners. The official also said that the two countries have agreed to set up an inter-subcommittee for trade between Vietnam’s Ministry of Industry and Trade and India’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry. The agreement, which was reached at the 15th Vietnam-India Inter-Governmental meeting in New Delhi in July, is aimed at boosting bilateral trade links and increasing two-way trade to US$7 billion by 2015, he said. During the first nine months of this year, India’s imports from Vietnam amounted to $1.84 billion, up 49.6 percent year on year, while its exports to Vietnam increased by 31.2 percent to $2.1 billion. Such good performance pushed the two-way trade to $3.94 billion, up 39.2 percent compared to the same period last year.

With 73 projects worth over $2 trillion being developed by Indian investors in Vietnam, India now ranks 12th among the top 100 foreign investors in the country. As one of the ways to further promote bilateral ties, the Counselor recommended that Vietnamese and Indian firms organize regular meetings and exchanges via fairs and exhibitions.