As per Le Tien Troung, General Director, Vietnam Textile and Garment Group (Vinatex), the garment and textile sector is targeting export turnover of $38-39 billion in 2021. To achieve this, the group proposes to reduce long-term interest rates. It also plans to make new investments besides increasing raw material production to meet the rules of origin from new-generation free trade agreements (FTAs).

Meanwhile, after a year of hardship and low efficiency, investment projects in Vietnam’s garment and textile sector would no longer hold high priority. This would make it difficult for businesses to access capital so the commercial banking system would need to be flexible in credit ratings in proportion to the speed of market recovery.

Enterprises also expect the government to offer policies to develop supporting technologies for the sector. Firms hope the government continues to direct to reduce non-production costs, especially logistics costs through the planning of the national logistics network, and other non-tariff costs.

The UK-Việt Nam Free Trade Agreement (UKVFTA), expected to come into force at the beginning of 2021, could be an export boon for Vietnamese garment-textile and footwear enterprises. It would fuel the growth of Việt Nam’s textile and garment industries by 6 and 14 per cent by 2030.