Vietnam’s trade value to hit record high in 2021

Statistics from the department show the country’s total import-export turnover was US$602 billion in the January-November period, surpassing the US$500 billion mark recorded two years ago. Of the total, the export value was US$299.67 billion, up 17.5%, and the import value was US$299.45 billion, up 27.5%, resulting in a trade surplus of US$225 million.

The agency forecasts that the 2021 import - export turnover is likely to surpass the US$660 billion mark, making Vietnam one of the 20 leading economies in terms of international trade.

The past 11 months saw 34 groups of commodities rake in US$1 billion each from exports, accounting for 93.5% of the total export turnover. Notably, there were seven groups of export products earning more than US$10 billion each, representing 66.4% of the total.

Processed industrial products took the lead, earning US$266.75 billion from exports, representing a year-on-year increase of 18% and accounting for 89% of the country’s total export turnover.

The United States was Vietnam’s largest export market in 11 months with a turnover of US$84.8 billion, up 22.2%. It was followed by China (US$50.5 billion, up 16.8%), the European Union (US$35.7 billion, up 11.9%), ASEAN (US$25.9 billion, up 23.3%), the Republic of Korea (US$20 billion, up 14.6%), and Japan (US$18 billion, up 3%).

The Ministry of Industry and Trade says Vietnam will have a great chance to increase its exports in the last month of 2021 on the back of economic recovery in major global powers such as the United States and the European Union which are Vietnam’s leading trading partners.

In addition, an increasing market demand especially for a range of highly competitive products of Vietnam in the year-end shopping season will help boost exports for the whole year.

Indeed, domestic businesses have taken advantages of opportunities from free trade agreements, especially new-generation FTAs, that Vietnam has signed with its partners, to increase their exports. They have gradually adapted to the agreements’ commitments along with preferential tariffs to be eliminated or reduced by partners, creating more competitive advantages for their products.

According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Vietnam’s goods-for-export structure has changed dramatically over the past 10 years, and the US$100 billion mark has been surpassed every two years.

Back in 2011, there were 21 groups of commodities that earned more than US$1 billion each from exports, of which only garment exports bagged US$14 billion. However, 10 years later the number of groups of commodities earning more than US$1 billion each from exports rose to 34, with seven of them raking in US$10 billion or more each (November 2021 statistics).

It is a good sign that the goods-for-export structure has changed significantly, from labour intensive sectors such as garment, footwear and fisheries, to high-tech commodity groups like phones, computers, and machinery, says a representative of the Ministry of Industry and Trade.