Since the early 2000s, Vietnam has applied sequenced trade liberalization, a two-track approach opening some sectors of the economy to international markets while protecting others. Vietnam is now one of Asia’s most open economies: two-way trade was valued at around 160% of GDP in 2006, more than twice the contemporary ratio for China and over four times the ratio for India.
Mobile phones and their parts were both imported and exported in large numbers, while in the natural resources market, crude oil was a top-ranking export and high levels of iron and steel were imported during this period.
Vietnam is a major exporter of agricultural products. It is now the world’s largest producer of cashew nuts, with a one-third global share; the largest producer of black pepper, accounting for one-third of the world’s market; and the second-largest rice exporter in the world, after Thailand. Vietnam is the world’s second largest exporter of coffee. The primary exports include tea, rubber, and fishery products.
In 2014 Vietnam negotiated a free trade agreement with the European Union, giving the country access to the EU’s Generalized System of Preferences. This provides preferential access to European markets for developing countries through reduced tariffs.
List of imported products from Vietnam to Nepal:
- Coffee and tea
- Sugars and sugar confectionery
- Furniture; bedding, mattresses, mattress supports, cushions and similar stuffed furnishings
- Garments, clothes, shoes
- Canned food
- Textile fibers; paper yarn and woven fabrics of paper yarn
- Cotton
- Toys, games and sports requisites
- Carpets and other textile floor coverings
- Clocks and watches