Vietnam and the UAE have signed a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) during Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s state visit to the UAE, marking a milestone in bilateral trade. The agreement covers areas such as trade, investment, and economic cooperation, with a strong focus on sustainability and digital transformation.
Notably, the CEPA will gradually eliminate tariffs on most exports between the two nations, significantly enhancing access to each other’s markets. The CEPA also fosters deeper collaboration in tourism, transportation, energy, and technology sectors, positioning Vietnam as a key investment destination. The UAE is already Vietnam’s largest export market in West Asia, with trade steadily increasing, reaching USD 4.7 billion in 2023.
During the visit, four prominent UAE companies—Prime Group, Abu Dhabi Ports Group (ADPG), NMDC Energy, and Emirates Driving Company (EDC)—announced plans to enhance their investment cooperation in Vietnam. These firms, active in sectors such as retail, infrastructure development, seaports, logistics, industrial parks, and transportation, shared their collaboration plans with Vietnamese partners, including the private conglomerate Vingroup.
The Vietnamese Prime Minister encouraged the UAE companies to focus on partnerships in digital transformation, green energy, the circular economy, electric vehicle manufacturing, and emerging technologies like artificial intelligence (AI), cloud computing, and the Internet of Things (IoT). These collaborations, through CEPA, will strengthen the expanding trade and investment relationship between the two nations, creating opportunities for deeper economic collaboration across various sectors.
(Sources: Vietnam Investment Review, The Investor)
