Opportunities to participate in the global supply chain
In the context of constantly fluctuating global trade, many Vietnamese enterprises are making efforts to expand export markets, adapting to new requirements of international partners.
Ms. Le Phan Minh Hoa - Director of Global FMCG Sourcing Company - said that the enterprise exports to many international markets, including Asia, Europe and the US, but the focus is still on Asian markets such as Malaysia, Singapore, Korea, and is also targeting Indonesia and the Philippines. The US market has recently been affected by tariffs, transportation costs, etc., so the company has temporarily stopped to focus on developing value-added products for the Asian region.
Previously, the company has exported stably to Malaysia and Korea, but is currently particularly interested in the Indonesian market, which has a consumption scale nearly 3 times higher than Vietnam and people's income is high enough to receive export products from Vietnam. However, businesses also face many difficulties, the biggest of which is reaching international customers due to their small and medium scale, being quite new to the export market and leaning towards services, so the opportunity to connect with partners is still limited. These are also common difficulties for many Vietnamese exporting enterprises, especially in expanding markets and reaching international customers.
From a management perspective, Mr. Tran Phu Lu - Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Trade Promotion Center - said that it is global fluctuations that open up opportunities for Vietnamese enterprises to proactively participate more deeply in the international supply chain, with support from the city's policies.
As the economic locomotive of the country, Ho Chi Minh City has always actively integrated and issued many policies to support businesses in removing difficulties, recovering production, digital transformation, applying modern technology associated with a green, circular production model. The city determined that if businesses want to participate deeply in the global supply chain, they need to support the development of high-quality products, enhance trade promotion, promotion and market expansion.
Ho Chi Minh City has organized many trade and investment promotion activities, focusing on international fairs and exhibitions, market surveys, trade connections, potential export product exhibition weeks, and new market seminars. The activities are implemented with a focus on, prioritizing small and medium enterprises, innovative startups, key industrial products and industries facing difficulties in consumption.
Strategic destinations in the supply chain
Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Phan Thi Thang said that in 2024, Vietnam's import-export turnover will reach more than 786 billion USD, of which exports will reach 405 billion USD, an increase of 14.3%, with 37 items exceeding the 1 billion USD mark and 8 items over 10 billion USD. In the first 8 months of 2025, total import-export turnover reached 597.93 billion USD, up 16.3%, of which exports reached about 306 billion USD, exceeding the growth target set at the beginning of the year.
According to Ms. Thang, these figures reflect the important transformation of Vietnamese enterprises from pure processing to product development and creative cooperation with global brands. Vietnam is being recognized by the international community as a leading manufacturing center in the region, with diverse supply capabilities, competitive prices and increasingly improved quality. After the pandemic and geopolitical fluctuations, many corporations, distribution channels and global e-commerce platforms have chosen Vietnam as a strategic destination in the supply chain.
To take advantage of the opportunity, the Ministry of Industry and Trade is implementing the Project "Promoting Vietnamese enterprises to directly participate in the foreign distribution network until 2030".
Imported goods are not only a measure of growth but also affirm the spirit of integration; if they take advantage of opportunities well, Vietnamese enterprises can rise strongly and affirm the position of Vietnamese goods in the international market - the Deputy Minister emphasized.
Mr. Ta Hoang Linh - Director of the Department of Foreign Market Development (Ministry of Industry and Trade) - said that currently, due to risks and fluctuations, businesses are forced to diversify the market, update standards, tastes, invest to improve quality, apply technology, trace the origin and move towards green, sustainable development.
Mr. Linh commented that Vietnamese enterprises are facing great opportunities from the trend of shifting the global supply chain and the attention of international investors, but also facing many challenges. To take advantage of the opportunity, businesses need to improve production capacity through technological investment, optimize processes, comply with international standards, while thoroughly exploiting FTAs, grasping the rules of origin to enjoy tariff incentives and expand markets.
In addition, businesses need to strengthen relations with distributors and international partners through trade promotion, direct connection with importers and coordination with Vietnamese Commerce abroad, thereby accessing sustainable cooperation opportunities and enhancing global reputation.
