Vietnamese electronics industry still low in technology and value

The Industry Agency under the Ministry of Industry and Trade said that production and trading of electronic products has grown significantly.

Exports of the country's electronics industry have an average growth rate of over 50% in the period from 2010 to 2019, which is the highest in the world.

The group of mobile phones and components exported reached US$50.9 billion last year, down 1% compared to 2019 due to the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic. Particularly, the group of exported electronics, computers and components reached US$44.7 billion, up 24.4% compared to 2019.

Among 11 items with export turnover of over US$1 billion, phones and components have the largest export value of US$14.1 billion in the first quarter of this year, accounting for 18.2% of total export turnover, up 9.3% over the same period last year.

Similarly, the group of electronic products, computers and components reached US$12 billion, up 31.3% over the same period last year.

Nguyen Thi Thu Thuy, Deputy Director of the Export Promotion Center of the Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, said that the Vietnamese economy continued to witness significant changes in its export structure in recent years.

From a country with major exports such as agricultural products and labour-intensive commodities, Vietnam is gradually moving towards products with higher technology and added value such as precision mechanical products and electronic products and components.

“With the experience of working and co-operating with the world's leading companies and corporations from the US, Europe, Japan and the Republic of Korea, Vietnamese businesses are fully capable to participate in the supply chains of large companies and corporations around the world," Thuy said.

However, the current localisation rate of the electronics industry is low, only about 5-10%. Most of the electronic products on the Vietnamese market are completely imported or assembled domestically with a majority of imported components.

In order to develop the electronics industry proactively, quickly and sustainably, a representative of the Industry Agency emphasised the need to develop measures to protect the market, with measures such as defensive taxes, technical barriers and fight against commercial fraud, counterfeit and smuggled goods.

At the same time, the agency also noted the focus on supporting promising Vietnamese enterprises in the electronics field to create opportunities for them to develop and play a leading role in the domestic market, especially electrical products and appliances.

It is also necessary to review and complete legal policies, especially regulations on goods of Vietnamese origin; implement solutions to expand domestic and export markets.

In addition, the agency also noted that electronic enterprises should pay more attention to identify core and breakthrough products to promote the electronics industry and develop faster and more efficiently.