Leather and footwear products of Vietnam were exported to nearly 50 countries and territories with the US, EU, China and Japan being the biggest markets.

The industry is fairly competitive thanks to the country’s economic, political and social stability and abundant supply of cheap and highly-skilled labour, he said.

Vietnam has established a firm position among exporters to the US, being the second largest footwear exporter to that market, with its exports increasing year after year.

The industry stands on three legs, with the US accounting for 34.5 percent of its total exports, the EU for 31.9 percent and other markets for the rest, he stressed.

Free trade agreements with the Republic of Korea, the Customs Union of Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus, in addition to an agreement with the EU to take effect in future, are opening new windows for Vietnam’s leather and footwear industry, he said.

The Government would continue to negotiate new FTAs to enable more exports of Vietnamese products, including footwear, he said.

“The health of the US economy is the determinant factor, not the TPP”.

If the TPP is signed but the US economy is not in good health, then demand would be not that good, he said.

But without the TPP, Vietnam can still maintain its competitiveness and keep its second position in the US market, he said.

Matt Priest, president of the Footwear Distributors and Retailers of America, said the US imported 2.3 billion pairs of footwear last year. China accounted for 72 percent of the total and Vietnam for 15.7 percent, but China’s share is declining and Vietnam’s is increasing, he said.

Mr. Phan Chi Dung, head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s Department of Light Industry, said domestic supply of tanned leather and other raw materials needed by the industry has increased to 40-50 percent.

The world market is showing signs of recovery, while production costs in China, the world’s largest footwear supplier, have tended to increase in recent years, resulting in importers shifting orders to Vietnam, he said.

Talking about the industry’s development plans, Mr. Dung said it targets rapid, sustainable development and better use of free trade agreements to expand exports.

It plans to restructure production to add value to products, increase local content in products, improve designs, and focus on medium- and high-quality products for domestic and export markets, he said.

Delegates at the summit said Vietnam’s leather and footwear sector has realised its weaknesses and is working to increase domestic content to meet the strict rules of origin enshrined in the trade agreements the country has signed.

Mr. Dung said the ministry is compiling a master plan for leather and footwear development, and it envisages production of more than 2 billion pairs of shoes a year by 2025, two times last year’s volume, and exports of over 30 billion USD.

He urged footwear firms to join hands and to increase investment in modern equipment and technologies to capitalise on the opportunities brought by global integration, participate in the global supply chain and make Vietnam a global footwear production base.