A trade delegate from New Zealand travelled to Vietnam to discuss future trade opportunities in the expanding Southeast Asian market. According to New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, there are over $2 billion in trade potential for New Zealand in Vietnam.
Trade is likely to take centre stage, with Vietnam and New Zealand aiming for $2 billion in two-way trade each year by 2024.
This follows years of investment by both parties in the NZ-VN partnership, a relationship that has provided significant benefits to both countries.
New Zealand FDI projects in Vietnam
New Zealand has 42 FDI projects in Vietnam in 2021, with a total registered investment of around US$209.5 million. This was an increase from 32 projects in 2019.
This investment was made in a variety of industries, including real estate, education, manufacturing, and processing, and it is expected to grow even more.
At least 18 companies from the consultancy, aviation, and manufacturing industries are represented in Ardern’s trade delegation.
Aware Group, Berryco, Boring Oat Milk, Callaghan Innovation, Creative HQ, ecostore, Gentrack Limited, Kiwigarden, Little Beauties, Miraka, New Zealand International Commercial Pilot Academy Limited (NZICPA), Plant and Food Research, SIEBA, T&G Global, TMC Ltd, University of Auckland, and Zespri are among these.
Trade relations between Vietnam and New Zealand
Three key regional agreements govern trade between New Zealand and Vietnam:
– The Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (CPTPP)
– ASEAN – Australia – New Zealand (AANZFTA)
– Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP)
Furthermore, both Vietnam and New Zealand have agreed to join the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF). The specifics of where this agreement may lead are unknown, but it demonstrates a common approach to international trade.
New Zealand’s exports to Vietnam
By the end of the fiscal year in June 2022, New Zealand’s exports to Vietnam had increased to NZ$1.03 billion (US$624 million), up from S$546 million in 2020.
Dairy
New Zealand is known for producing some of the world’s best dairy products due to its cold temperature and clean air.
Vietnam, on the other hand, has a growing middle class with a taste for milk but an industry that can only meet 40-50 percent of the country’s need.
These two reasons have resulted in a significant increase in New Zealand’s dairy exports. Dairy, eggs, honey, and consumable items contributed for more than half of New Zealand’s Vietnam exports (US$485 million) in 2021.
Education
New Zealand has an excellent education system and invites international students from all around the world.
5,000 of those overseas students were Vietnamese nationals in 2019. However, during COVID, this number decreased to 2,000, a reality Ardern hopes to reverse with her visit to Vietnam: “We are aiming to spark and build that market again post-Covid,” she added.
Forestry products
New Zealand’s abundant natural resources have also been essential to trade between the two countries.
Wood exports from New Zealand to Vietnam totaled little over US$107 million in 2021, accounting for slightly more than 10% of overall NZ exports to the Southeast Asian country.
Top 5 exports from New Zealand to Vietnam
New Zealand Exports to Vietnam (2021) |
Dairy products, eggs, honey, edible products | US$485.59M |
Edible fruits, nuts, peel of citrus fruit, melons | US$133.63M |
Wood and articles of wood, wood charcoal | US$107.02M |
Miscellaneous edible preparations | US$64.03M |
Iron and steel | US$30.02M |
Source: Trading Economics |
Vietnam’s exports to New Zealand
Vietnam’s exports to New Zealand totaled NZ$1.36 billion (US$824 million) by the end of the fiscal year in June 2022, the majority of which was electronics and electrical equipment, but this figure also includes footwear and travel services.
Electronic machinery
In comparison to New Zealand, Vietnam’s relatively low-cost labour has been the backbone of its exports to the much smaller Pacific nation.
As an electronics manufacturing powerhouse, Vietnam exported over US$230 million in electronics and electrical equipment to New Zealand in 2020.
Footwear
Vietnam’s third largest export sector is footwear. Vietnam exports approximately 1 billion pairs of shoes per year, including approximately US$40 million in Vietnamese shoes to New Zealand in 2020.
Travel services
Vietnam’s distinct culture, combined with a recent push toward a more open tourism industry, has resulted in a boom in the sector.
Vietnam has proven to be an appealing destination for Kiwis who enjoy traveling, with an estimated 28,000 New Zealanders visiting Vietnam in 2019.
Top 5 exports from Vietnam to New Zealand
Vietnam Exports to New Zealand (2020) |
Electrical, electronic equipment | US$230.41M |
Footwear, gaiters and the like | US$39.87M |
Machinery, nuclear reactors, boilers | US$30.97M |
Furniture, lighting signs, prefabricated buildings | US$29.24M |
Edible fruits, nuts, peel of citrus fruit, melons | US$19.76M |
Source: Trading Economics |
Opportunities for New Zealand in Vietnam
Food, commodities, and technology, according to New Zealand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT), are all major growth sectors for New Zealand enterprises in Vietnam.
According to MFAT, Vietnamese supermarket chains are rapidly expanding, creating “important product-to-market channels for exporters” that can assist New Zealand items reach consumers faster.
This could be especially advantageous for Kiwi exporters of perishable goods.
Furthermore, MFAT believes that commodities such as timber and aluminium can play an important role in Vietnam’s development. In the manufacturing industry, these resources are in high demand. As Vietnam’s manufacturing sector expands, so will demand for these imports.
Technology is also mentioned by MFAT as a sector that could provide opportunities for New Zealand.
“High-tech and low-emissions agriculture, sustainable food production, water and natural resource management, digital transformation, marine science and technology, and innovation and technology to address environmental degradation and the threat of climate change are other areas of opportunity and growth potential,” it says.