VN Express is carrying coverage of a government report on outcomes from the EVFTA, that has found an increase in Vietnam’s trade surplus with the bloc of 35 percent over 2021. It does, however, also point out that the bulk of that trade is being driven by European firms rather than domestic producers. It notes that EU firms in Vietnam typically export high-tech goods, clothing, and machinery whereas local firms are focused on raw materials and semi-finished goods.

This isn’t the first time that local media has pointed out the disparity in the benefits European firms have received from the EVFTA compared to local businesses. Whereas it doesn’t seem to be a problem right now, it’s worth monitoring these sorts of ideas in that in other places in the world they have been known to become problems.

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