Vietnam’s trade surplus hits 2 billion USD

Vietnam's trade surplus in the first 11 months of 2014 has reached 2 billion USD, a 100-million USD increase over the surplus recorded in the first ten months of the year.
Vietnam's trade surplus in the first 11 months of 2014 has reached 2billion USD, a 100-million USD increase over the surplus recorded in thefirst ten months of the year.

The General Statistics Office(GSO) made the announcement and predicted that Vietnam would finish 2014with a trade surplus and a large contribution from the foreign directinvestment (FDI) sector.

GSO figures showed that the country'sexport revenues reached 137.33 billion USD, a 13.7-percent year-on-yearincrease, and 67 percent came from the FDI sector, including crude oil.The FDI sector's exports increased by 13 percent year-on-year.

Leadingexports include garments and textiles, with a turnover of 19.183billion USD, an 18.2-percent increase; phones and components, 21.681billion USD, an 8.3-percent increase; footwear products, 9.181 billionUSD, a 23-percent increase; and computers and electronic components,10.259 billion USD, a five-percent increase.

Products with rapidexport growth this year include seafood, which increased by 20.2percent to reach 7.272 billion USD; fruits and vegetables, by 39.6percent to 1.35 billion USD; and coffee, by 34.3 percent to 3.31 billionUSD.

However, several traditional exports witnessed declines ineither volume or value or both. Coal fell by 1.8 percent in volume to6.812 million tonnes and 37.9 percent in value to 506 million USD.Rubber reached 1.634 billion USD, a 26.2-percent decline, because of thesharp fall in world prices.

The United States was the country'sleading importer, with an export value in the first 11 months of thisyear reaching 26.2 billion USD, a 21.3-percent increase.

Thecountry's import value reached nearly 135 billion USD, a 12.6-percentyear-on-year increase, with the FDI sector accounting for more than 56.8percent.

Vietnam mainly imported raw materials for production such as fabrics, plastics, machines and equipment.

Worthconsidering is Vietnam's trade deficit with China which, in the first11 months of this year, reached 26.4 billion USD, a 22.1-percentyear-on-year increase and nearly one-fifth of the country's total importturnover.

Vietnam's imports from China reached 40 billion USDor nearly 30 percent of the country's export turnover. This high rate isa serious concern, according to the GSO.-VNA

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