Opportunities to increase exports to Japan

Doors are widely open for Vietnamese exports to Japan

An important export market

Japan has been one of the five largest export markets for Vietnamese goods for the past many years. Vietnamese exports to Japan have grown continuously and reached US$8.21 billion in the first seven months of this year.

Japan has accepted various Vietnamese exports although it is a demanding market. In early May 2016, Vietnamese bananas successfully entered the Don Kihote retail chain, showing that Vietnamese goods could meet strict requirements of the world’s most difficult-to-please market.

Since 2014, Japanese importers have increased plastic packaging imports from Vietnam instead of China. Vietnam has moved ahead of Thailand to become the second largest plastic packaging exporter to Japan. Last year, Vietnamese products accounted for 14 percent of plastic packaging imported by Japan, up 26.85 percent compared with 2014.

New export opportunities

The event at AEON Lake Town in Saitama offered participating businesses chances to introduce and sell their products, directly contact Japanese importers and survey distribution networks in Japan such as Takashimaga trade center, and Keio Plaza in Tokyo. The AEON Group provided assistance for Vietnamese businesses to organize workshops and present their products in about 20 stalls of the AEON supermarket chain.

According to Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Ho Thi Kim Thoa, in recent years the MoIT has coordinated with foreign retail groups to organize many Vietnamese Goods Week events at French, Italian, South Korean, and Thai supermarket chains, which brought encouraging results.

A variety of Vietnamese goods such as fruit and vegetables, dry noodles, textiles and garments, wood products, and seafood have been distributed on a regular basis in these markets. The event at AEON Lake Town in Saitama was expected to contribute to increasing the presence of Vietnamese goods in the Japanese market in the coming time.

Quynh Nga