Export of hi-tech products surges

Last year, the export of mobile phones and components also brought home US$12.7 billion. Main importers were the EU, United Arab Emirates and India with turnover of US$4.68 billion, US$1.93 billion and US$572 million, respectively. 

According to Ministry of Industry and Trade statistics, growth was also seen in the export of other technological commodities to all foreign markets so far this year. 

Vietnam only began to export electronic goods about 10 years ago, but now the country’s products have been shipped to nearly 50 markets worldwide. 

In the 1997-2012 period, the export of computers, electronic products and parts experienced an annual rise of 21.2 % on average, from US$440 million in 1997 to over US$7.8 billion in 2012. 

China was the main importer of Vietnamese-made computers, electronic products and parts with US$1.33 billion, followed by the EU (US$1.23 billion), the US (US$749 million) and Malaysia (US$631 million). 

The sector is striving for US$40 billion in electronics and mobile phone exports by 2017. 

Over the years, Vietnam has attracted a lot of big foreign-invested projects worth tens of billions of dollars in the field with the participation of global names like Samsung, Intel Corp., and Taiwan (China)’s Foxconn and Compal Electronics. 
Just last month, Samsung Electronics Vietnam unveiled a US$2 billion project to build a plant manufacturing and assembling electronic goods in Thai Nguyen province. The company also increased investment in its project in Bac Ninh province to US$1 billion. 
However, the country’s electronics sector is facing big challenges as foreign-invested enterprises account for up to 90 % of the sector’s total export turnover. At the same time, they control 80 % of the domestic market share. 

Experts have urged domestic companies to increase their production capacity and shift from processing and assembling to manufacturing.