The Ministry of Industry and Trade anticipates that sales of imported electronic goods will soar by between 5-10 percent this year if the Government carries out its plan to cut import duties.
The ministry said that if import tariffs are reduced, made-in-Vietnam electronic goods would be less cost effective.
The proposed tax cut meets the country's obligations under the Vietnam-Japan Economic Partnership, the ASEAN-China trade agreements and its World Trade Organisation commitments.
The Ministry of Finance said it plans to cut import taxes by 1-6 percent on nearly 1,000 items that include electronic products to meet its World Trade Organisation commitments.
According to the ministry, the value of imported electronic goods and spare parts rose by 23 percent in 2010 against the previous year, which it partly attributed to the decline in the value of the Vietnamese dong against the US dollar in the last quarter.
Meanwhile, consumers spent 5.14 billion USD on imported electronic products and components last year, against the ministry's forecast of 4 billion USD, which boosted the country's trade deficit to 12.3 billion USD.
The ministry said 60 percent of imports came from China. The second biggest exporter to Vietnam was the Republic of Korea, followed by Japan.
Nguyen Van Nam, from the Nam Hong Export-Import Co said China dominated imports because its prices were more competitive than other countries. He also said domestic importers were allowed to pay in yuan for goods, which added to China's competitiveness./.
The ministry said that if import tariffs are reduced, made-in-Vietnam electronic goods would be less cost effective.
The proposed tax cut meets the country's obligations under the Vietnam-Japan Economic Partnership, the ASEAN-China trade agreements and its World Trade Organisation commitments.
The Ministry of Finance said it plans to cut import taxes by 1-6 percent on nearly 1,000 items that include electronic products to meet its World Trade Organisation commitments.
According to the ministry, the value of imported electronic goods and spare parts rose by 23 percent in 2010 against the previous year, which it partly attributed to the decline in the value of the Vietnamese dong against the US dollar in the last quarter.
Meanwhile, consumers spent 5.14 billion USD on imported electronic products and components last year, against the ministry's forecast of 4 billion USD, which boosted the country's trade deficit to 12.3 billion USD.
The ministry said 60 percent of imports came from China. The second biggest exporter to Vietnam was the Republic of Korea, followed by Japan.
Nguyen Van Nam, from the Nam Hong Export-Import Co said China dominated imports because its prices were more competitive than other countries. He also said domestic importers were allowed to pay in yuan for goods, which added to China's competitiveness./.
