Vietnam trade surplus burgeons to over 700 million USD for H1

Trade activities via Cai Lan port (Photo: VNA)

Hanoi (VNA) - There were signs of recovery in the area of socio-economic development in Vietnam for the first half of 2022. Exports sustained two-digit growth helping Vietnam continue to enjoy a trade surplus in the first six months of the year.

Shipments of major items maintained growth momentum thanks to an increase of products worth billions of USD, greatly contributing to the national economy.

Domestic businesses speed up

A report by the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) showed that export turnover hit 32.65 billion USD in June, up 5.6 percent against the previous month. It brought the six-month figure to 185.94 billion USD, posting a year-on-year surge of 17.3 percent. 

The domestic economic sector saw a strong recovery after bearing the brunt of the COVID-19 pandemic. With an estimated turnover of 49.26 billion USD, this sector contributed 26.5 percent to total export turnover and recorded a 20 percent expansion compared to last year.

Meanwhile, the foreign-invested sector, including crude oil, earned 136.68 billion USD, up 16.3 percent. 

Some products seeing high export value included phones and components, raking in 29.58 billion USD; computers, electronic products and components 27 billion USD (up 13 percent); machinery and tools 21.3 billion USD (up 24.3 percent).

Export turnover of agro-forestry-fishery products reached 15.8 billion USD in the first half, growing nearly 18 percent compared to the same period last year and accounting for 8.5 percent of the country’s total turnover.

The MoIT said thanks to price advantage, many items in this group achieved favourable export results. In particular, shipments of coffee rose 21.7 percent in volume and 49.7 percent in value. Similarly, cassava and related product exports surged 13 percent in volume and 28 percent in value.

Although export volume of peppercorn declined 19.1 percent, its turnover posted an increase of 14 percent owing to rising prices. 

According to the MoIT, the US continued to be the largest export market of Vietnam in H1 with 55.96 billion USD, up 22.7 percent compared to the previous year. It was followed by China with 26.3 billion USD, seeing a year-on-year rise of 7.2 percent. 

Posting a trade surplus of 710 million USD in H1

Import turnover hit 32.37 billion USD in June, inching down 0.8 percent against that in May. The H1 figure stood at 185.23 billion USD, which was a year-on-year expansion of 15.5 percent. Of the amount, the domestic sector purchased goods worth 65.23 billion USD, up 15.2 percent. 

Import turnover of computers, electronic products and components took the lead with 42.7 billion USD, recording a year-on-year surge of 26.7 percent. 

As a result, Vietnam enjoyed a trade surplus of 276 million USD in June and 710 million USD in H1, respectively. 

To meet set targets for this year, the MoIT will continue to provide businesses with support in market information and trade promotions. They also function to help them optimise opportunity brought by free trade agreements and seek new markets via global value chains.

The ministry will keep a close eye on fluctuations of the international issues and assess their impacts on production and export-import activities of Vietnam so as to timely adjust and respond to the situations. 

It asked relevant agencies to review and evaluate domestic demand for strategic commodities such as fertiliser, petrol and oil, and coal in order to devise suitable measures for trade activities and at the same time ensure sufficient supply for domestic consumption and production, especially in case material prices skyrocket. 

Dozens of trade promotions have been held since the start of the year to connect with international and regional markets, according to the Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency (Vietrade). This helped small- and medium-sized enterprises to access major and promising markets and facilitated recovery in the post-pandemic period by diversifying the supply chain./.