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Vietnamese Businesses Position in TPP NegotiationsVietnamese Businesses
Position in TPP Negotiations
Dr. NGUYEN Thi Thu TrangWTO Center
Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI)
Structure of the Presentation
Recommendation of Vietnamese
Businesses on TPP Negotiations1
Faith, Hopes and Worries22
Trade in Goods: Exports Benefits
and Rules of Origin - NME Status3
General Trade: Equality and Special
/Different treatments4
2
Vietnam Business Recommendations
Prepared by International Trade Policies Advisory Committee – VCCI
Agreed and undersigned by 22 Business Associations who speak the voice of more than 24,000 individual companies
Mentioning positions on different issues:
• Market access
• Market open
• Fragile domestic groups with more protection needed
• Related issues (labor, environment, trade remedies, SPS, TBT, IP, GP)
3
Vietnam Business RecommendationsList of Vietnam Business Associations agreed and undersigned to
Vietnam Business Recommendations for TPP Negotiation
STT Organization Members
1 Vietnam Leather & Footwear Association 143
2 Vietnam Electro-technical Industry Association 76
3 Vietnam Electronic Industries Association 145
4 Vietnam Banks Association 55
5 Vietnam Beer, Alcohol and Beverage Association 94
6 Vietnam Rubber Association 128
7 Vietnam Engineering Consultant Association 200
8 Vietnam's Association of Foreign Invested Enterprises 300
5
8 Vietnam's Association of Foreign Invested Enterprises 300
9 Vietnam Sugar Association 38
10 Vietnam Titan Association 50
11 Vietnam Auto Motorcycle Bicycle Association 141
12 Vietnam Association of Accountants and Auditors 192
13 Vietnam Association for Building Materials
14 Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association 365
15 Vietnam Steel Association 100
16 Vietnam Pharmaceutical Companies Association 106
17 Vietnam Pulp and Paper Association 95
18 Vietnam Timber and Forest Product Association 400
19 Vietnam Federation of Civil Engineering Association*
20 Vietnam Association of Small and Medium Enterprises 20000
21 Hatinh Small and Medium Enterprises Association 1474
22 Phutho Small and Medium Enterprises Association 150
* Vietnam Federation of Civil Engineering Association contain 12 Professional Associations, 44 Province Associations, 40 collective member
Associations - Each members represent tens/ hundreds of enterprises.
Overall Position
/ that TPP will help bring new opportunity
for Vietnamese exports through tariff elimination;
/that TPP will help enhancing competitiveness
for Vietnamese companies by new chance of
cooperation, reasonable pressure and better
business-supporting services;
/that TPP will help bring in new and better FDIs
Very optimist/Very optimist/Very optimist/Very optimist/
6
Overall Position
With fair
concerns on:
How to dilute
factors that
could nullify
potential
benefits
How to give
enough
support to
fragile
domestic
groups
How to cope
with stronger
competitors
from TPP
members
7
Faith, Hope and Worries
Hope
Worries
Faith
that TPP will
that Vietnam
could export
� Any factor that
could nullify
such potential
benefits
Trade in Goods
that TPP will
eliminate high
tariffs for
Vietnamese
exports
could export
more, and thus
ameliorate the
condition of life
of millions of
Vietnam labors
benefits
(ROOs)
� Any issue that
could place
such exports
in risks (NME)
8
Faith, Hope and Worries
Trade in Goods
Any thought of refusing such crucial benefits to
Rules of origin (ROOs) Negotiations
Should enable Vietnam to make benefit from TPP tariff elimination
(at least better than status-quo)
Should be as much simple as possible
(free trade v. barrier in any form, including ROO requirements)
such crucial benefits to Vietnam for fear of certain potential benefits leaked to a third country is unreasonable
(TPP member interests should prevails, in any case)
9
Faith, Hope and Worries
Trade in Goods
All but the US in TPP recognized Vietnam as market economy
Unreasonable that a Member of a 21st century FTA is not recognized by partner as market economy
Ma
rke
t E
co
no
my (
NM
E)
recognized by partner as market economy
Bias to consider Vietnam economy today with that 20-30 years ago
The fact that Vietnam export has certain competitiveness in price is nothing to do with Government control or subsidy
No
n-M
ark
et
Ec
on
om
y (
NM
E)
10
Faith, Hope and Worries
Faith that free trade should and must bring in benefits to all, especially fragile ones
Hope that all Vietnamese people could have better life with TPP
General Trade
•TPP partners with different level of development and competitiveness
>> The weak (because of their lower starting-point) may lost in the game
•Some might unreasonably take Equal trade for Even commitments
•Fragile groups are more fragile in developing countries
•Developing countries are more fragile than developed ones
Worries as to the fact:
11
Faith, Hope and Worries
Never mean 2-tier
Might be introduced into TPP in 2 ways:
• SDT Clauses
Special and different treatmentsGeneral Trade
A WTO principle
A recognized principle in many international issues (trade and non-trade)
Never mean 2-tier TPP
• SDT Clauses
• Special treatment in commitment levels
12
Faith, Hopes and Worries
Agricultural products
Priority Trade
General Trade
Products relating to huge number of labors (especially female labors)
Sectors that might crucially impact the whole economy
Reasonable
protection for
fragile groups
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And thus…
WE strongly SUPPORT the TPP but with keen INSISTENCE on, among other things:
Simple and beneficial ROOs for Vietnam
Market Economy
Recognition for Vietnam
Existence of Special and
Different Treatments for
Vietnam
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Nguyen Thi Thu Trang
WTO Center – Legal Department
Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry
Email: [email protected]
Websites: www.wtocenter.vn; www.antidumping.vn