Export turnover surpasses US$200 billion over seven-month period

According to details given by Vu Duc Giang, chairman of the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association, textile and garment exports to the EU throughout the first half of this year soared by roughly 40% over the same period from last year.

The Europe-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) has made a positive impact, creating an open and comprehensive market, while prompting the textile and garment industry to make greater efforts to invest in technological innovation. This is as well as promoting automation and digital governance in order to meet the very strict rules of origin set out in the terms of the EVFTA.

Along with textiles and garments, statistics compiled by the Ministry of Industry and Trade indicate that, during the reviewed period, the group of processed industrial products raked in US$185.8 billion, an annual rise of 16.1%, thereby accounting for 85.9% of the overall export turnover.

Furthermore, the export turnover of mineral fuels continued to maintain the highest increase among commodity groups, duly expanding by 116.9% over the same period from 2021, of which the export of petroleum, coal, ores, and minerals witnessed a sharp increase due to the high prices of these commodities.

As a result, by the end of July export turnover had exceeded US$200 billion to reach US$216.35 billion, up 16.1% on-year.

Although the country's exports recorded an impressive growth rate during the previous months, along with a favourable exchange rate, the export turnover in July fell compared to June, primarily due to a fall in export turnover of the group of agro-forestry-fishery products and the group of processed industrial products with respective decreases of 7.4% and 7.2%.

Capitalising on advantage of market opportunities

In the opposite direction, import turnover in July hit US$30.3 billion, down 6% compared to the previous month an increase of only 3.4% over the same period from last year. Generally, during the past seven months, the entire country spent US$215.59 billion on importing goods, up 13.6% on-year.

According to figures given by the Ministry of Industry and Trade, in July prices of strategic and essential commodities, such as petroleum and gas, and production materials prices, such as coal, wood, fertilizer, titanium, aluminum, kept rising, thereby leading to an increase in the import turnover of some items and increasing the total import turnover of the entire nation.

However, making up roughly 89% of the country’s total import turnover during the reviewed period remained the group of goods which needs to be imported, raw materials and accessories for domestic production, with a turnover of US$191.6 billion, up 14.6% over the same period from last year.

Most notably, imports of energy products continued to record an upward trend, partly due to increased import volume and a scarce supply that has driven import prices up.

In order to create greater momentum for exports moving into the final months of the year, especially to exploit major markets such as the United States, Europe, and Japan, in addition to removing difficulties for businesses, the Ministry of Industry and Trade has requested functional units to strengthen connectivity. Other efforts include supporting businesses in market information, export promotion, taking advantage of commitments set out in signed FTAs and through global value chains to find new markets.

At a recent conference held on trade promotion with foreign markets, Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien suggested that overseas Vietnamese trade offices actively grasp, assess, and evaluate the host countries' policies to promptly advise the Ministry on strategic issues. They can also propose appropriate and timely policy responses to ensure the interests of the country and businesses in international economic integration.

The Minister also underlined the necessity of promoting co-operation and attracting foreign enterprises to invest in the domestic industrial sector, especially fundamental industries.

It can be considered essential to focus on diversifying the supply of raw materials to serve domestic industries, creating optimal conditions for Vietnamese enterprises to be active in production and exports in order to participate in and enhance its position in the global supply chain, Minister Dien added.

With regard to the US market, the San Francisco Trade Office said that this year and ahead in 2023, a series of connections and forums will be launched between Oregon, Colorado, the West Coast of the US, and Vietnamese enterprises and localities, to boost co-operation in both trade and investment among partners.