China's Lifan group first entered the Vietnamese market in 1997. After nearly 10 years of marketing and reputation building, the company's vehicle with its high quality and low price has now become increasing popular among Vietnamese consumers.

"Lifan, especially its motorbikes, sells very well in Vietnam, a country where the motorbike is a major means of transportation," Nguyen Thi Oanh, who is in charge of Lifan's marketing in Hanoi, told Xinhua Monday. The group has recently launched its compact car model Lifan 520, which has also become hot pursuits of local buyers.

Lifan is not the only Chinese product that has successfully tapped the Vietnamese market. Others like Chunlan air conditioners, TCL television sets, Media electrical home appliances, have all gained their sound share in this Southeast Asian country.

But their success is hard won.

Several years ago, due to the infiltration of counterfeit goods and a number of other reasons, the image of Chinese products in Vietnam was blemished.

With their clear investment strategies in Vietnam, these leading Chinese enterprises have successfully brought their products to Vietnamese households, changing the image of Chinese goods, and contributing to broadening and deepening China-Vietnam trade ties.

Lai Yonghua, general director of Lifan Vietnam, a joint venture, said Lifan now engages in the combination mode of production, supply and purchase with various products, including cars, motorbikes, engines, petroleum-powered machines and electricity- run vehicles, not just the export mode with motorbikes and their engines as in the early period.

With Vietnam's accession to the World Trade Organization, Lifan plans stronger investment in the country with additional 200 million U.S. dollars and building a 200-hectare Lifan industrial complex. It even eyes market expansion in the region when the China-ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) free trade area is established.

After the construction of the industrial complex, Lifan's accumulated investment in Vietnam will be 500 million dollars.

Lifan's development in Vietnam basically reflects the development process of most Chinese enterprises in the Vietnamese market: from simple export mode to multi-layer trade and investment cooperative ties.

Since China and Vietnam normalized relations in 1991, their trade ties have grown rapidly.

The two-way trade between the two countries surged from 30 million dollars in 1991 to 6.74 billion dollars in 2004, over 8 billion dollars in 2005, and 4.6 billion dollars in the first half of 2006. The two countries are expected to reach the trade target of 10 billion dollars set for 2010 ahead of schedule. China has been Vietnam's biggest trading partner since 2004.

The China-Vietnam investment cooperation, especially on large- scale investment projects, has been expanded steadily.

According to Vietnamese statistics, by Dec. 31, 2005, China had 352 investment projects with a total registered capital of 731 million dollars and realized a capital of 181 million dollars, ranking the 15th among countries and regions having investment in the country.

The two neighbors are now actively working for a long-term cooperation in such fields as infrastructure, energy and transport, including the facilitation of the process of signing a memorandum of understanding about two economic corridors and one belt, and the implementation of large-scale projects, including those on roads and thermoelectric plants.

Source: Xinhua