A significant export market for Victoria.
Southeast Asia is a dynamic and diverse region that has frequently outperformed global economic growth rates.
Victoria has prioritised strengthening its relationship with Southeast Asia and has four Victorian Government Trade and Investment (VGTI) offices located in Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia and Singapore.
Southeast Asia Trade and Investment Snapshot
The Australia‑ASEAN Special Summit held in Melbourne in March 2024 is an important opportunity to mark the 50th anniversary of Australia‑ASEAN relations. Our offices in‑market and teams on the ground in Victoria also work closely with leading businesses in the region to support their plans to expand their operations to Victoria.
Explore Victoria's current trade and investment opportunities and key areas of collaboration with Southeast Asia.
Market snapshot
Victoria’s key goods exported to Southeast Asia include fruit and nuts, milk and dairy, wheat, meat and petroleum.
Increasing demand is expected for services tied to innovation, healthcare and education. Victorian exporters are well placed to capitalise on opportunities in these sectors.
Victorian exporters are also expected to benefit from Southeast Asia’s increasing middle class, particularly in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam. The region’s rapid urbanisation creates opportunity for Victorian exporters as demand for infrastructure, professional services and connectivity services increases. The number of middle-class households in Southeast Asia is predicted to quadruple by 2030, which will raise demand for premium agricultural goods, innovative services, international travel, healthcare and education and training.
Southeast Asia Insights Winter 2024
The announcement of AVLD delegates further strengthens Victoria’s ties with Vietnam
Global Victoria returns as the headline sponsor for this year’s program, which will strengthen connections between Victoria and Vietnam and create two-way opportunities for years to come.
The 20 exceptional Delegates for the 2024 Australia Vietnam Leadership Dialogue were announced at events in both Melbourne and Ho Chi Minh City last month, ahead of the group participating in a 5-day residential program in Melbourne in August.
Vietnam is Victoria’s 10th largest two-way merchandise trading partner and 9th largest export market. Between the 2018-19 and 2022-23 financial years, Victorian merchandise exports to Vietnam grew by 66%.
While the majority of Victorian exports to Vietnam are in food and fibre, Vietnam’s growing middle class presents further opportunities in professional services, education, energy transition and healthcare.
This year’s Dialogue will continue to shine a spotlight on Victoria-Vietnam relations, building on the momentum achieved during last year’s celebrations of the 50th anniversary of Australia-Vietnam Diplomatic Relations.
Visit the AVLD website to learn more about this year’s Delegates.
Southeast Asia Commissioner working to boost trade and investment ties
Victoria's Commissioner for Southeast Asia Naïla Mazucco has begun her posting in Southeast Asia, bringing a wealth of experience that will boost opportunities for Victorian businesses.
Based in Jakarta, Naïla will work with our offices in Singapore, Kuala Lumpur Ho Chi Minh City to grow trade, investment and education links and strengthen Victoria’s economic activity across the region.
Naïla has outlined her immediate priorities for the coming year, focusing on enhancing the state's economic and cultural connections with the region.
Previous regional insights
Key industries of opportunity for Victorian exporters
Education, training and skills
Victoria is a key education partner for Southeast Asia, and as the region pushes to standardise vocational qualifications, more exciting opportunities are emerging for Victorian education providers.
Larger Southeast Asian nations such as Indonesia, Vietnam and Malaysia are actively exploring ways to engage internationally to upskill and educate their workforces.
Food and agriculture
Thanks to the growing demand for premium agricultural products and processed foods, there are many opportunities for Victorian exporters to engage across Southeast Asian markets.
Victoria’s food, beverage and agriculture industry has a global reputation for supplying high quality, clean, traceable and safe food products, placing it in a favourable position to meet Southeast Asia's growing demand for premium meat and dairy products, temperate fruit and nuts, wheat, and processed and packaged food items.
Professional services
The scale and speed of Southeast Asia’s development has opened up significant opportunities for Victorian firms to provide innovative services and products across a range of traditional and emerging sectors, including infrastructure, digital technology, water, health and medtech, liveability and renewable energy.
Victoria is well placed to partner with Southeast Asian nations focusing on innovation due to its strong professional services sector, culture of innovation and research expertise, as well as Victorian Government investments.
Tourism
Victoria is a top destination for Southeast Asian tourists and this is only set to increase over the next ten years. As Southeast Asia’s middle class continues to grow, more consumers will want to explore the world and have capacity for international leisure travel.
Digital services
Southeast Asia is home to many tech unicorn start-ups with a value of over US$1 billion.
Southeast Asia’s digital transformation has rapidly accelerated and is reshaping almost every aspect of business and social lives, providing further opportunity for Victorian exporters.
The sector offers enormous opportunities for Victorian companies, many of which are enabling small businesses in Southeast Asia to accelerate their adoption of digital tools and compete with larger firms.
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