VN, UK target US$4 bln in trade in 2013 VGP - Viet Nam and the UK have set targets of US$4 billion in two-way trade and US$3 billion in the flow of direct investment pumped by UK businesses into the Southeast Asian country. The targets were announced at the 6 th Meeting of the Viet Nam-UK Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO), which convened in London on November 8. Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Ho Thi Kim Thoa and Minister of the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office Hugo Swire co-chaired the annual meeting. Opening the event, Swire said economic, investment and trade ties play a key part in bilateral relations between countries, thereby the UK and Viet Nam have spared no effort to beef up their relationship in all spheres, especially in the fields of investment and trade. He noted with pleasure that UK-Viet Nam investment and trade ties have grown strongly since the two nations signed a Strategic Partnership Agreement in September 2010. Having praised Viet Nam as a prestigious and attractive market to foreign companies, including those from the UK, the minister expressed his hope that Viet Nam would continue to be appealing to foreign investors and be competitive globally. He, however, pointed out the country's shortcomings such as complicated licensing procedures and poor transparency. For her part, Deputy Minister Thoa said the issues and targets raised at the last meeting have been performed well, bringing practical results to both sides. The UK has provided useful support for Viet Nam in training banking and financial staff and in reforming the banking industry as well. The deputy minister suggested that JETCO should improve its operations, including preparations for its annual meetings, in a bid to seek effective measures to foster bilateral economic, investment and trade ties. She revealed that in June 2012, Viet Nam and the European Union (EU) signed a Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA) and have recently launched negotiations on a Free Trade Agreement (FTA), thus facilitating economic, investment and trade ties between Viet Nam and EU in general and between Viet Nam and the UK in particular. At this meeting, officials discussed and put forward a range of solutions to effectively settle trade disputes, promote intellectual property rights and speed up the implementation of Viet Nam's commitments to the World Trade Organization (WTO). According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, two-way trade between Viet Nam and the UK exceeded US$3 billion in 2011, including US$2.4 billion worth of Vietnamese exports. Viet Nam's export staples include seafood, footwear, garments, timber, coffee, mobile phones and components, while mainly importing pharmaceutical products, equipment, machinery, chemicals and steel. In the first nine months of this year, bilateral trade reached US$ 2.5 billion. By the end of September 2012, the UK have had 163 valid projects in Viet Nam, with a combined registered capital of US$2.69 billion, ranking fourth among 20 EU countries investing in the Southeast Asian nation.