US market expected to shrink in 2009

Hanoi (VNA) - The Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) has forecast that export turnover to the United States is expected to increase just 14 percent in 2009, lower than the growth rate in 2008.

The US market makes up 21 percent of Vietnam 's total exports.

According to trade experts, the protective trade policies of the USA are the
principal barrier to Vietnamese imports.

T he difficulties exporters face is likely to be exacerbated by the global
economic crisis and falling US demand.

In spite of difficulties, Vietnam will have many opportunities to export goods
to the US market in 2009.

The textile and garment sector, for one, has seen the door to the US open wide
after the US Department of Commerce recently conducted there are insufficient
evidence to launch anti-dumping investigation into Vietnam 's products.

The US Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has
also approved fresh dragon fruit commercial imports from Vietnam , paving the
way for the fruit to seek a larger share of market.

Vietnam 's consul general in San Francisco Le Quoc Hung said Vietnamese
enterprises should set up close, long-term ties with US distributors in order to
penetrate into the market.

According to MoIT, the export turnover to the US in 2008 reached 12.2
billion USD, up 19 percent over 2007, including 5.2 billion USD earned from the
export of textile and garment products.-Enditem