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17 April 2023 - The Australian Trade and Investment Commission (Austrade) in partnership with the Vietnam Foreign Investment Agency (FIA), Ministry of Planning and Investment, delivered the Australia – Vietnam Investment Forum in Hanoi.
Australia’s Minister of Trade and Tourism, Senator the Hon Don Farrell, and Vietnam’s Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment, HE Nguyen Thi Bich Ngoc, attended the forum with over 350 representatives from Australian and Vietnamese governments, industry associations and the private sector.
Bolstering two-way trade and investment is a joint priority as Vietnam and Australia commemorate 50 years of bilateral diplomatic relations in 2023.
In 2021-22, two-way goods and services trade grew by around 40% to AUD 33 billion with Australian exports to Vietnam up around 50% valued at AUD 20.5 billion compared to the previous year. The two countries are working together on new opportunities and challenges, including measures to address climate change to meet our shared objective of net zero emissions by 2050.
Australia is a long-term partner of Vietnam’s economic development and Australian companies have been investing in Vietnam for decades. Companies including Telstra, RMIT, ANZ, Bluescope Steel, Allens and BHP have made strategic investments that have contributed to the infrastructure and economic development of Vietnam.
Other notable investment from Australian includes Austal, VMS and Midway Metals in manufacturing; Linfox and Aurecon in logistics and services; Blackstone Minerals and Blueleaf Energy in resources and renewable energy; and CBH and SunRice in agribusiness.
As an investment destination, Australia continues to outperform other advanced economies. The economic strength is based on sound fundamentals. Australia’s legal and governance systems are transparent, property rights are protected, and an adaptive regulatory environment makes Australia a business-friendly nation.
Australia is well positioned to become a renewable energy superpower, which will require greater inward investment and deeper commercial linkages with countries like Vietnam. Already, Vietnamese companies have invested capital in Australia of AUD 850 million. The Hoa Phat Group and TH Group are the largest investors, focusing on resources and livestock.
Joining the Australia-Vietnam Investment Forum, Senator the Hon Don Farrell, Australia’s Minister of Trade and Tourism stated: “Deepening our engagement with Vietnam is a priority for the Australian Government, including as we diversify our trade and investment links and develop the Southeast Asia Economic Strategy to 2040. Vietnam offers significant trade and investment opportunities for Australia over the next few decades.”
To further promote economic, investment and trade cooperation between Vietnam and Australia, the Ministry of Planning and Investment shared: "Two sides need to continuously promote the role and effectiveness of the Vietnam - Australia Economic Partnership Ministerial Conference. This is an important channel for economic exchange and cooperation between the two countries and creates favourable conditions for businesses of both sides to carry out effective business activities. Also, the two sides need to continue to research, develop and implement cooperation activities to promote the effective implementation of the Strategy for Enhancing Economic Cooperation between Vietnam and Australia (EEES).”
This Forum successfully raised awareness of the investment environment in Australia and Vietnam and helped to identify commercial opportunities to forge clean energy trade and investment partnerships.
