Vietnamese goods make inroads into Canadian market

Of the total, the export value of apparel, phones and components, and seafood hit US$392.278 million, US$314.862 million, and US$139.5 million, growing 57.59, 22.97, and 73.56 percent annually, respectively.

In 2021, despite Covid-19, Vietnam shipped goods worth US$5.3 billion to Canada, an annual increase of 20.8 percent.

The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), of which both nations are members, has been considered the leverage behind such growth. The pact came into force in late 2018. Vietnam also signed a free trade agreement with Canada, therefore enjoying tariff reduction or elimination. Notably, since January 1, 2021, Canada removed a total of 96.3 percent of the tax lines for goods originated from Vietnam.

According to the Vietnam Trade Office in Canada, Vietnam is the biggest partner in Southeast Asia of the North American nation. However, room for Vietnamese products to enter the Canadian market remains large, as their value now just accounts for 1.7 percent of Canada's total imports.

In addition to these advantages, the access to this market is facing various challenges, particularly high transport and preservation costs, and strict safety and technical standards.

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