President of Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines, and Agriculture (ICCIMA) has urged the need for introducing a settlement mechanism as well as forming a barter trade fund with Vietnam.
Hossein Selahvarzi made the remarks in a meeting in Tehran on Wednesday with Vietnamese National Assembly Chairman Vương Đình Huệ.
The Vietnamese official, who is on a visit to Tehran, also attended a joint Iran-Vietnam Business Forum in the headquarters of Iran Chamber of Commerce.
Referring to setting up Iran-Vietnam Joint Chamber of Commerce, he called on the Vietnamese official to pursue the formation of a mirror chamber of commerce in Vietnam.
He said that Iran has high potentials in providing constructional materials, and also has capable companies in rendering engineering services, as well as highly advanced pharmaceutical companies which can cooperate with Vietnamese partners.
Selahvarzi expressed hope for further cooperation between the private sectors of Iran and Vietnam in advanced technologies and nanotechnology.
He also referred to some banking and settlement problems, noting that Iran has been using innovative ways which can also be used in trade with Vietnam.
Iran private sector is ready for using alternative ways such as forming a barter trade fund for promotion of bilateral trade, Selahvarzi said.
The Vietnamese national assembly chairman, for his part, said Vietnam has had 50 years of diplomatic relations with Iran and the two countries have even continued their ties over the past years even despite the coronavirus pandemic and the Western sanctions on Tehran.
Huệ referred to $150 million annual trade between Iran and Vietnam, while noting that it is not significant when compared to Vietnam’s $750 billion annual trade.
He expressed hope about fulfillment of a $2 billion target for annual trade between the two countries.
The official said that a joint economic commission of the two countries is scheduled to convene in the near future where he said they will discuss a financial mechanism and barter trade.