Industry and Trade News March 26: Checking rice export business, FTA increases advantages for export

On March 26, the press reported a lot of information related to the Industry and Trade sector. The Industry and Trade Newspaper would like to review some notable information.

Energy sector:

Giao Thong Newspaper published the information on March 26: "Why does Vietnam's largest oil refinery have inventory?"

During a working session with the Ministry of Industry and Trade delegation (March 25), Mr. Kazutaka Yamato, General Director of NSRP, said that NSRP is currently facing some difficulties in distributing products domestically, especially in the first and second quarters of 2025 due to low market demand and high inventories at some oil warehouses of major petroleum distributors.

Faced with that situation, NSRP had to export about 62,000 tons of products in March to reduce inventory and ensure stable operation of the factory.

However, to ensure safe and stable operation of the refinery and at the same time serve the domestic fuel market demand well, NSRP requests the Ministry of Industry and Trade to consider and support PVN/PVNDB and major distributors to maximize the consumption of NSRP products in the second quarter and the remaining months of 2025.

"This support will help NSRP maintain cash flow, stabilize production activities and limit negative impacts on the factory," said an NSRP representative, emphasizing that in reality, NSRP is facing many challenges and difficulties such as market decline due to the Covid-19 pandemic, sharp decline in refined oil product profit margins, or financial problems...

Import and export sector

People's Public Security Newspaper published the news: "Inspecting the implementation of legal regulations on rice export business"

This activity aims to ensure transparency, market stability and protect the interests of rice producers against domestic and international fluctuations. The inspection team will inspect the rice export business of rice export traders in the Mekong Delta provinces on the purchase, import and export of rice reserves in circulation according to the provisions of Decree No. 107/2018/ND-CP dated August 15, 2018 of the Government on rice export business and Decree No. 01/2025/ND-CP dated January 1, 2025 of the Government amending and supplementing a number of articles of Decree No. 107. The inspection period is from September 2024 to the end of February 2025. The inspection period is from March 25 to March 28, 2025.

There are 44 rice export businesses subject to inspection this time.

The inspection team will focus on enforcing legal regulations on rice export business, strictly handling violations, and reviewing the supply-demand and price situation in the market.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade is also assigned to coordinate with relevant agencies to check for trade fraud, fraud in the origin of exported rice, as well as perfect regulations on rice export in the context of many market fluctuations.

VOV newspaper published the news: "Export potential is wide open in the Middle East - Africa market"

Domestic export enterprises are taking full advantage of opportunities to build brands and market products in the potential Middle East - Africa market.

Export activities and investment cooperation between Vietnam and the Middle East - Africa region are increasingly open. At the end of October 2024, the Vietnam - UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between Vietnam and the UAE was signed. This is a historic event that creates a breakthrough in economic, trade and investment cooperation between the two countries, opening a big way for Vietnam to penetrate deeper into the Middle East - Africa market.

Under the CEPA Agreement, Vietnam and the UAE have agreed to make a strong commitment to trade liberalization, pledging to eliminate tariffs on 99% of Vietnam's exports to the UAE, while Vietnam also committed to eliminating tariffs on 98.5% of the UAE's exports to Vietnam. The CEPA also includes many provisions to facilitate trade and investment, in line with current trends in digital transformation and green development.

Trade defense sector

Tin Tuc newspaper published the information: "Taking advantage of FTA to reduce risks and increase export advantages"

According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Vietnam's export goods have faced 282 cases of foreign investigation of Vietnam's export goods, of which the most are anti-dumping (153 cases), followed by self-defense (59 cases), anti-tax evasion (39 cases) and anti-subsidy (31 cases). Notably, the cases are all related to strong export products such as shrimp, pangasius, steel, wood, and products with medium and small export values ​​such as lawn mowers, honey, and paper plates. Therefore, taking advantage of free trade agreements (FTAs) and diversifying markets, avoiding overheated export growth into a market under trade defense investigation is something Vietnamese enterprises need to pay attention to. In addition to early warning information, enterprises need to proactively respond to trade defense lawsuits to reduce risks and increase advantages for exported goods. Along with that, businesses must regularly and closely monitor the trade policies of countries and export markets such as tax policies, policies on goods origin, food safety for consumers, policies related to trade defense, and prepare resources to deal with the risks of trade defense lawsuits.

Preliminary processing of tuna products for export at the factory of Ba Hai Joint Stock Company (Phu Yen). Photo: Vu Sinh/VNA

Investment Newspaper published the news: "Aluminum and steel enterprises review exports to the EU market"

The Trade Remedies Authority (TDA) of the Ministry of Industry and Trade said that the European Commission recently announced the Action Plan on Steel and Metals. This action plan "implements measures to maintain and expand Europe's industrial capacity in the steel and metal sectors" and is designed to "enhance the industry's competitiveness and protect its future". In the face of a series of measures to protect the EU's aluminum and steel industry, the TDA recommends that the Association and enterprises producing/exporting products such as steel and aluminum review their production and export activities to the EU and closely monitor market movements to promptly develop response plans if necessary.

Industry and Trade Newspaper

Source: https://congthuong.vn/tin-cong-thuong-263-kiem-tra-kinh-doanh-xuat-khau-gao-fta-gia-tang-loi-the-cho-xuat-khau-380162.html