Korea-Vietnam Business Leaders Say "IT and Semiconductor Cooperation Top Priority"

KCCI Conducts Business Cooperation Survey at 'Korea-Vietnam Business Forum'
Top Promising Sector: IT and Semiconductors... Korea Requests Vietnamese Government to Expand Investment Incentives

Major companies in Korea and Vietnam expect 'cost reduction' and 'technology development' as the most anticipated benefits from economic cooperation between the two countries, respectively. Both Korean and Vietnamese businesspeople identified 'electronics and electrical' as the sector currently generating the most synergy, and 'IT and semiconductors' as the sector with the greatest growth potential in the future.

On the 1st of last month, attendees including Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh of Vietnam and Minister Ahn Duk-geun of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy are taking a commemorative photo at the 'Korea-Vietnam Business Forum' held at Lotte Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

The Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) announced these findings on the 1st through the 'Survey on Business Perceptions of Korea-Vietnam Economic Cooperation.' The survey was conducted among 257 businesspeople who attended the 'Korea-Vietnam Business Forum' held on the 1st of last month.

Regarding the 'sector currently creating the greatest economic value in bilateral economic cooperation,' businesspeople from both countries ranked electronics and electrical first (Korea 45.5%, Vietnam 42.6%). Korean companies followed with distribution and logistics (11.6%), textiles and apparel (11.1%), and automobiles, steel, and metals (10.6%). Vietnamese companies responded with plant and machinery (17.6%) and textiles and apparel (16.2%) in order.

For the 'sector with the greatest growth potential in future bilateral economic cooperation,' both countries ranked IT and semiconductors first (Korea 34.6%, Vietnam 39.8%). Korea selected green energy as second (22.3%), while Vietnam chose finance and fintech (20.4%). A KCCI official stated, "Recently, the Vietnamese government has been promoting digital economy development and eco-friendly transition policies, leading to the emergence of unicorn companies like VNPAY and Momo, sparking a fintech boom. Korean companies, having experienced the fintech boom, seem to be paying more attention to the growth potential of Vietnam's eco-friendly energy market."

Regarding the 'positive effects of economic cooperation on the national economy,' Korean companies most frequently cited expanded investment and trade (42.3%) and supply chain stability (29.1%). Vietnamese companies mentioned job creation (41.2%) and industrial structure advancement (27.9%).

On the 'positive effects of economic cooperation on companies,' Korean companies responded in order of cost reduction (39.7%), supply chain stability (25.9%), and new business discovery and market expansion (21.2%). Vietnamese companies most often cited technology development (35.3%), supply chain stability (25.0%), and new business discovery and market expansion (22.1%).

When asked 'which areas the government should focus on to expand economic cooperation,' Korean companies requested the Vietnamese government to enhance investment incentives (39.2%) and ease regulatory burdens on businesses (32.8%). This reflects concerns from companies about the Vietnamese government's recent introduction of a global minimum tax and the imposition of value-added tax on foreign-invested enterprises. The KCCI Vietnam office has received numerous tax-related difficulties from companies operating there and is actively engaging with the Vietnamese government on these issues.

Vietnamese companies asked the Korean government to work on expanding opportunities to find business partners (44.1%) and increasing investment incentives (22.1%). They mainly expressed a desire to expand cooperation with Korean companies.

Park Il-jun, Executive Vice Chairman of KCCI, said, "Based on the survey results, KCCI plans to identify specific projects to expand economic cooperation between the two countries in collaboration with the Vietnam office and the Korea-Vietnam Economic Cooperation Committee."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.