Vietnam, with a young population and increasingly wealthy and growingmiddle class, was a potential market of 90-million customers, saidThomas Loidl, Austrian Ambassador to Vietnam during a Austria-Vietnambusiness meeting in Hanoi on September 29.

Thirteen Austrianenergy and environmental companies attended the meeting to learn moreabout the market and seek potential partners.

Economic and tradecooperation between the two countries have grown considerably in recentyears. Two-way trade rose from 175 million USD in 2007 to 1.3 billionUSD in 2012 - and 2.1 billion USD in 2013.

However, the resultswere considered low compared with the potential, said Doan Duy Khuong,Vice-Chairman of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI).

Hesaid Vietnam would be a gateway for Austrian companies to access thewider ASEAN market, particularly when the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC)comes into being next year.

Therefore, the market could grow from Vietnam's 90 million to a total of about 600 million in ASEAN, Khuong added.

Hesaid the Vietnamese Government was trying to complete the country'slegal regulatory framework and develop better market mechanisms tocreate favorable condition for companies to come to Vietnam, includingAustria.

The business meeting is held by the VCCI, the AustrianEmbassy and Advantage Austria in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh city every yearto create good conditions for Vietnamese and Austrian companies todevelop trade.

Khuong said that the VCCI was willing to cooperate with trade promotion agencies in other countries to organise similar events.-VNA