Vietnam racks up US$1.29 billion in trade surplus in two months

The country’s trade turnover during January-February topped some US$95.81 billion, a year-on-year surge of 25.4%. Of the total, exports amounted to US$48.55 billion, a yearly hike of 23.2%, while imports were estimated at US$47.26 billion, or 25.9% higher than the same time last year.

Foreign-invested companies accounted for 76.4%, or US$37.07 billion, of Vietnam’s total export turnover. Meanwhile, the domestic sector shipped abroad US$11.48 billion worth of products.

There were nine commodities joining the billion-USD export club, including telephones and parts (US$9.3 billion, up 22.8% year-on-year); electronics, computers and parts (US$6.9 billion, up 27.3%); equipment, machines and parts (US$5.5 billion, up 72.6%); footwear (US$3.2 billion, up 15.4%); and wood and wooden products (US$2.4 billion, up 51%). They made up 73% of the country’s export turnover.

Vietnam also saw strong surge in shipments of several agricultural products, such as fruits and vegetables (US$610 million, rising 14.6%), rubber (US$516 million, increasing 109.7%), cashew (US$442 million, up 21.5%), and cassava (US$256 million, hiking 78.2%).

The US was Vietnam’s biggest importer as it splashed out US$14.2 billion on Vietnamese products, or 38.2% higher than the amount it spent the same time last year. China came second with US$8.5 billion, followed by the EU with 6.3 billion, ASEAN US$4.2 billion, the Republic of Korea US$3.4 billion, and Japan US$3.2 billion.

Meanwhile, the country spent big (US$47.26 billion) on imports, with foreign-invested sector purchasing US$31.64 billion worth of products from abroad for production, up 31.4%, while that of the domestic sector surged 16% to US$15.62 billion.

In the two-month period, China was the largest exporter of Vietnam, with revenue estimated at US$17.3 billion, up 85.7% year-on-year, followed by the Republic of Korea with US$8.4 billion, ASEAN US$5.6 billion, Japan US$3.1 billion, EU US$2.3 billion, and the US US$2.1 billion.

In a bid to support local firms in promoting production and exports, the Ministry of Industry and Trade said that it will work to capitalise on opportunities from the signed free trade agreements to seek measures for market development. Additionally, it will keep close watch on the global market to identify key export products, while paying due heed to penning measures for market development.