Business

Vietnam and New Zealand aim to double trade

Vietnam and New Zealand aim to double trade

By ASSOCIATED PRESS

New Zealand's Prime Minister John Key, (standing left) and his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Tan Dung (standing right) witness the signing of an aviation cooperation by New Zealand Minister for Economic Development Steven Joyce (left) and Vietnamese Transport Minister Dinh La Thang (right) in Hanoi, Vietnam, Sunday, November 15, 2015. Photo: AP

HANOI, VIETNAM: Vietnam and New Zealand have signed several cooperation agreements during a visit by Prime Minister John Key to Hanoi as they seek to double their trade in the next five years. Key is on the first visit to the Southeast Asian country since 2010. He said Sunday that the agreements covering education, aviation and health care will facilitate companies from both countries to do more business. The two countries seek to bring their bilateral trade volume to $1.7 billion by 2020. The two-way trade stood at $800 million last year. Both Key and his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Tan Dung strongly condemned the terror attacks in Paris on Friday that left 129 people dead and 350 injured.