Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam recorded a trade deficit of 7.11 billion USD in the first four months of 2026, according to the National Statistics Office under the Ministry of Finance.
In its socio-economic report released on May 3, the office said the country’s total import-export turnover in April was estimated at 94.32 billion USD, up 0.8% from the previous month and 26.7% year-on-year.
For the January-April period, total trade turnover reached an estimated 344.17 billion USD, rising 24.2% from the same period last year. Of the figure, exports increased 19.7% while imports surged 28.7%.
Export turnover in April was estimated at 45.52 billion USD, down 2% month-on-month. The domestic economic sector contributed 8.88 billion USD, down 1.2%, while the foreign-invested sector, including crude oil, generated 36.64 billion USD, down 2.1%.
Compared to April last year, however, exports rose 21%. The domestic sector declined 4.2%, while foreign-invested enterprises posted a sharp increase of 29.2%.
In the first four months, export revenue was estimated at 168.53 billion USD, of which the domestic sector earned 33.65 billion USD, up 0.4%, accounting for 20% of total exports. The foreign-invested sector brought in 134.88 billion USD, up 25.8%, representing 80%.
Twenty-four exports posted turnover of more than 1 billion USD, accounting for 89.1% of total export value. Among them, seven items exceeded 5 billion USD each, making up 69.1%.
Processed industrial goods remained the largest export category, generating 151.5 billion USD and accounting for 89.9% of total exports. Agricultural and forestry products reached 12.68 billion USD, seafood 3.55 billion USD, and fuels and minerals 800 million USD.
Meanwhile, imports in April were estimated at 48.8 billion USD, up 3.6% from March and 32.5% year-on-year. The domestic sector imported goods worth 13.8 billion USD, while the foreign-invested sector 35 billion USD.
During the first four months, import turnover reached 175.64 billion USD. Of the total, the domestic sector imported 49.27 billion USD, up 20.4%, while the foreign-invested sector 126.37 billion USD, up 32.3%.
China remained Vietnam’s largest import market, with turnover estimated at 69 billion USD. Vietnam posted trade surpluses of 46.9 billion USD with the US, 14.2 billion USD with the European Union and 500 million USD with Japan. It recorded trade deficits of 46.4 billion USD with China, 15 billion USD with the Republic of Korea and 7.6 billion USD with ASEAN.
The country’s trade deficit in April alone was estimated at 3.28 billion USD. In the first four months, the domestic sector posted a deficit of 15.61 billion USD, while the foreign-invested sector recorded a surplus of 8.5 billion USD./.
