site.btaUPDATED Bulgarian and Vietnamese Companies Present Opportunities to Strengthen Economic Relations

New business opportunities between Bulgaria and Vietnam were presented at the Bulgarian-Vietnamese Economic Cooperation Forum held at the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry here on Thursday. The event, organized on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and Bulgaria, aims to strengthen economic, trade and investment cooperation between the two countries.

The Head of the Commercial Section at the Vietnamese Embassy in Sofia, Nguyen Than Hai, spoke about the investment opportunities between the Bulgaria and Vietnam, emphasizing that the Bulgarian market is very favourable for Vietnamese businesses, especially after Bulgaria's accession to Schengen. According to data presented by Nguyen Than Hai, the largest share of Bulgarian exports to Vietnam in 2024 was comprised of grain products (USD 25 million turnover), medicines (USD 15 million turnover) and inorganic chemicals (USD 10.2 million turnover). The largest share of Vietnamese exports to Bulgaria in 2024 was furniture, spices, iron and steel.

Nguyen Than Hai added that there are potential goods that would be of interest to the European market, especially tropical fruits such as mango, passion fruit, pineapple.

The event was attended by Julian Balchev, Secretary General of InvestBulgaria Agency, who said that there is great potential for Vietnamese investment in Bulgaria. He highlighted Bulgaria's tax system as an advantage, as it is considered the simplest and most competitive in the EU. He added that the corporate and personal income tax is only 10%, which makes the country attractive to foreign investors. Compared to the EU average, the corporate tax is between 20 and 30%. Balchev also added that Bulgaria has a tax preference that stimulates research and development.

The forum also discussed opportunities for cooperation in the field of arbitration proceedings, contacts between tour operators from Bulgaria and Vietnam to promote tourism opportunities, working conditions and import of labour.

The forum enjoyed a lot of interest with participants from 10 Vietnamese and more than 60 Bulgarian companies. Two contracts were signed between Bulgarian and Vietnamese companies in the field of food industry.

One of them was an agreement between Pharnetix, a Bulgarian pharmaceutical company and trader of medicines, food supplements and medical devices, and the Vietnamese ERA Pharma.

Representatives of the two companies told BTA that the document signed today was preceded by talks over the past year. Their cooperation will start with the sale of food supplements. The Bulgarian side will organize marketing and distribution. The next step envisages the sale of medicinal products.

The agreement also provides for the sale of products from Bulgaria to Vietnam.