Cavico Corporation, a Vietnamese company working in the fields of infrastructure development, including the construction of hydropower facilities, dams, bridges, roads and urban buildings throughout Vietnam and the Pacific Rim, commented today on the new, groundbreaking trade deal aimed at opening the country's markets to US investment and trade. The agreement was signed in the Reunification Palace in Ho Chi Minh City, formerly Saigon.

"This is truly a historic agreement," commented Timothy Pham, US representative for Cavico Corporation. "We are confident that with Vietnam's accession into the World Trade Organization (WTO), which should follow this agreement, the country will experience tremendous interest from US investors and corporations looking to expand into this rapidly growing region."

Pham continued, "Importantly for Cavico, Vietnam made commitments that will gradually open its energy services market, which could provide additional revenue opportunities for the company and its subsidiaries focused on development of energy products."

"Both sides have been speeding the process of Vietnam's accession to the WTO," stated Vietnam Trade Minister Truong Dinh Tuyen. "It makes important trade preconditions and mutual benefits for both sides." Since 2001, when a previous trade deal was negotiated, Vietnamese exports to the United States have grown to more than $6.5 billion in 2005. US exports to Vietnam were more than $1.2 billion. Vietnam is a country of 83 million people. The country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew 8.4% in 2005, one of the world's fastest rates after China. (Market Wire, Inc.)