RIO DE JANEIRO — The Vietnamese Government will create all favourable conditions for Brazilian investors to cooperate and invest successfully and sustainably in the Southeast Asian country, Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính said.

PM Chính made the promise at the Việt Nam – Brazil Business Forum held in Rio de Janeiro on Saturday afternoon (local time) as part of his working trip to the Latin American country to attend the expanded BRICS summit and bilateral activities. The forum saw the attendance of leaders of ministries, sectors and organisations and more than 80 delegates representing large corporations and enterprises of the two countries.

On the good foundation of the Việt Nam - Brazil Strategic Partnership, economic relations have always been an important pillar. Currently, Brazil is Việt Nam's largest trading partner in the Latin American region with impressive trade growth. Last year, two-way trade turnover reached nearly US$8 billion.

Việt Nam's main exports to Brazil include phones, phone components, computers, electronic products and components, machinery, equipment, other spare parts, means of transport and spare parts, iron and steel of all kinds. Việt Nam mainly imports from Brazil ores and other minerals, cotton of all kinds, animal feed and raw materials, soybeans, corn, wood and wood products, textile and garment raw materials, leather and footwear.

Regarding investment, Brazil currently has six investment projects in Việt Nam with total registered capital of $3.83 million, while Việt Nam has only one investment project in Brazil with registered capital of $300,000. The two countries are striving to increase two-way trade turnover to $10 billion soon and to $15 billion by 2030.

After listening to an introduction to Việt Nam's investment environment, delegates said that room for economic cooperation between the two countries was still very large and not commensurate with the potential as well as the political and diplomatic relations, especially after the two countries upgraded their relationship to a Strategic Partnership in November 2024.

Representatives of the business communities of the two countries introduced the potential, strengths and investment cooperation desires of each side, and proposed solutions to promote cooperation between the two countries, especially in areas where one side has potential and strengths and the other has demand such as aviation, heavy industry, metallurgy, energy, telecommunications and technology, food, and agriculture.

Speaking at the forum, Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính emphasised that the world situation was changing very quickly, bringing many opportunities and advantages but also more difficulties and challenges. Therefore, it would be necessary to promote solidarity and unity, uphold multilateralism, promote free trade, and not politicise trade and science and technology to overcome difficulties and challenges, and effectively respond to national, comprehensive and global issues that no country can solve by itself, he said.

The PM assessed that the Việt Nam-Brazil bilateral relationship, after many years of establishment, had continuously developed and was currently at its best stage ever. Therefore, it would be necessary to maintain, consolidate, enhance and develop the relationship to make it increasingly good, stable, sustainable and long-term with a long-term vision, contributing to peace, stability, cooperation and development in the region and the world.

Sharing about Việt Nam's vision and actions in realising the country's development goals until 2030 and 2045, PM Chính said that "Việt Nam determines stability for development, development creates stability and has no other purpose than to firmly protect the country’s independence, sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity, and constantly improve the material and spiritual life of the people".

In recent times, Việt Nam has become a bright spot in terms of growth in the region and the world. Its GDP growth in the following quarter is higher than the previous quarter, and the growth in the first six months of 2025 is the highest in the same period in nearly 20 years and is among the top in the region as well as the world. The macro economy is stable, inflation is controlled, major balances are ensured, according to the government leader.

Việt Nam is focusing on drastically implementing many new tasks, including revolutionary and historical contents such as focusing on restructuring the apparatus, rearranging and reorganising administrative units and implementing the 2-level local administration model, drastically implementing the "four pillars" according to the resolutions of the Politburo and drafting other resolutions on health, education, culture, bringing the country into a new era of development.

Announcing the very good and successful results of his talks with President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, PM Chính reiterated the Brazilian leader's assertion that both sides would make the best possible efforts and that the two economies have strengths that complement each other very clearly, as shown by the fact that "what Brazil lacks, Việt Nam has potential, what Brazil has strengths, Việt Nam needs".

Assessing that both countries have important positions and roles in the two regions of South America and Southeast Asia, he hoped that the two countries would continue to promote their roles as a bridge between these two regions with much potential, advantages and dynamic development.

Based on the good political and diplomatic relations and the common core values between the two countries, with the spirit of "harmonising benefits, sharing risks", PM Chính called on businesses to promote connectivity, cooperation and investment, and concretise the agreements of the two countries' leaders.

Specifically, he urged the enterprises to implement three key and breakthrough cooperation areas, including agriculture; science and technology, innovation, digital transformation, telecommunications; and mining and processing of minerals such as copper, oil and gas.

Along with that, the two sides would further open the market for each other's strong agricultural products. On this occasion, Brazil exported the first batch of beef to Việt Nam and Việt Nam exported a batch of tra-basa fish and tilapia to Brazil, the PM said.

Brazil affirmed its readiness to import more seafood and rice from Việt Nam. The two sides also agreed to sign an agreement on ensuring stable and long-term food security for Brazil, in which Việt Nam will export rice so that Brazil can stabilise its food supply.

In particular, as Brazil and Việt Nam are the world's first and second largest coffee producing countries, the two sides agreed to promote cooperation in the coffee industry, promote the formation of a coffee production and export alliance, study and build a coffee trading floor, build a common coffee brand, and enhance the coffee enjoyment culture associated with the culture of the two nations.

The two sides also promoted a new direction of cooperation, which is to invest in the production and deep processing of agricultural products on the spot to serve the two countries' markets and export to other countries, promoting the strengths of each country, optimising costs and harmonising benefits. The PM gave an example that Vietnamese enterprises could grow rice and process rice right in Brazil, while Brazilian enterprises could raise livestock and process meat in Việt Nam.

The two sides also agreed to soon conclude the FTA negotiations between Việt Nam and the Southern Common Market (MERCOSUR) in the last six months of 2025, and promote the FTA between Việt Nam and Brazil, thereby supporting each other in the current difficult context. At the same time, the two sides will perfect the legal foundation on investment and labour cooperation, facilitate visas, and expand direct flights to further promote cooperation between businesses.

PM Chính called on businesses to contribute to concretising the very good political-diplomatic foundation between the two countries into economic measures, connecting businesses, linking the two economies, and "bringing friendship and sincerity into products, specific and measurable results, delivering benefits to both countries".

He promised that the Vietnamese Government would create all favourable conditions for Brazilian investors to cooperate and invest successfully and sustainably in Việt Nam.

Immediately after the forum, under the witness of PM Chính and leaders of ministries and sectors of the two countries, Vietnamese and Brazilian enterprises exchanged cooperation documents, including an agreement on cooperation in raising and exporting pangasius and tilapia between Nam Viet Joint Stock Company (Việt Nam) and AV09 Commerce Import Company (Brazil); an agreement on cooperation in the field of quail farming with a total value of $200 million between Trong Khoi One-Member Co Ltd (Việt Nam) and Fujikura Quail Genetics Company (Brazil); an agreement on cooperation in training young football players with a total value of $3 million between Hồ Chí Minh City Football Club and Gremio Football Club. — VNS