Vietnam’s trade ministry urged China to take urgent measures to ease congestion at border crossings, including starting a pilot programme to allow fully vaccinated workers to alleviate manpower shortages by loading and unloading the trucks held up at Chinese border crossings.
The two sides agreed to stay in close communication to resolve the problem as reported in Chinese media quoting a Vietnam News Agency report. Trade between China and Vietnam, particularly overland, has been suffering after thousands of trucks were held up at the border following reports that imported Covid-19 cases had been detected in Pingxiang, a border city in Guangxi. Since then, China has stepped up its border controls with its neighbour.
China is the largest trading partner with Vietnam, and the biggest market for its fruit and vegetables. Vietnamese media reports say many exporters are now forced to sell the fruit at a lower price in domestic markets as they could not export their consignment to China.
