The Brazilian Association of Footwear Industries (Abicalcados) last week asked trade authorities to remove Vietnam from the list of producers it had earlier accused of dumping footwear in Brazil.

The request follows an investigation by the Trade Protection Agency which found that Vietnamese shoemakers and exporters did not harm the South American nation’s domestic market, a report by Voice of Vietnam radio station said.

Abicalcados filed an anti-dumping petition in October 2008 requesting the probe, which also scrutinized footwear imports from China and several other countries.

Diep Thanh Kiet, vice president of the Ho Chi Minh City Shoes and Leather Association, called the decision “good news.”

But he told Thanh Nien Daily Monday, “The anti-dumping petition could be filed again any time.”

Vietnamese shoemakers should be more cautious when exporting to Brazil, he warned, pointing out that they should study Brazilian antidumping policies and use a transparent and standard accounting system.

They would be able to avoid such legal threats when more members of the World Trade Organization, to which Vietnam was admitted in 2007, recognize the country as a market economy, he added.

Vietnamese footwear exports to Brazil were worth only around US$40 million in January-November last year, according to the Vietnam Leather and Footwear Association.

The country’s total footwear exports were worth $4.2 billion in that period.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade last month also warned of possible legal action by footwear firms in Mexico and Peru for dumping.