Vietnam targets $600 billion in export turnover in 2021

Vietnam posted solid export performance in the first quarter of 2021, and at such a growth speed, its export turnover is likely to hit $600 billion for the whole year, experts have said.

Malie Nguyen

Dieuhuong270198@gmail.com May 08, 2021 | 14:02

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Vietnam targets $600 billion in export turnover in 2021

Tan Cang - Cai Mep International Terminal in the southern Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province. Photo by Shutterstock/Hien Phung Thu.

Tran Thanh Hai, Deputy General Director of the Agency of Foreign Trade under the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT), attributed the positive results to Vietnam’s success in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic.

It is necessary to continue paying special attention to responding to the pandemic, he stressed, noting that this will be the foundation and most important factor in sustaining export growth in the time to come.

Free trade agreements (FTAs) Vietnam has signed, especially the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and the EU-Vietnam FTA (EVFTA), have benefited local exporters and helped them expand to new markets, Vietnamplus reported.

To maintain export growth, the MoIT has promoted online trade promotions and trade fairs as well as e-commerce, to support enterprises in maintaining trade links with partners, Hai said.

The ministry will also focus on accelerating institutional and administrative reform relating to exports, and providing information to exporters to address the difficulties they face.

Vietnam’s export turnover reaches over $28 bln in January

Vietnam’s total import-export turnover in January 2021 reached $55 billion, of which exports stood at $28.55 billion, representing a year-on-year increase of 55%, according to data released by the Import and Export Department under the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

Most items posted an impressive export growth, especially industrial goods such as mobile phones ($6.1 billion, up 126% over the same period), computers and electronic components ($3.9 billion, up 46%), wood and wood products ($1.34 billion, up 59%), etc.

While the increase in export turnover of industrial goods was mainly due to the contribution of foreign direct investment (FDI) enterprises, the exports of agricultural, forestry and aquatic products were a bright spot despite the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Illustrative photo: VNA

Mr. Do Lap Nghiep, Deputy General Director of Nam Viet Group, said that during the last Lunar New Year, the company exported more than 200 tons of Tra fish to Europe, Thailand, Asia, South America, and the Middle East, etc.

According to Mr. Ho Quoc Luc, Chairman of the Board of the Sao Ta Foods Joint Stock Company, its shrimp exports showed positive signals in January.

"The United States and Europe remain potential markets”, said Luc.

The report of the An Giang province’s Department of Industry and Trade indicated that in the first month of 2021, most of the locality’s staples such as rice, seafood, vegetables, fruits, and garments, etc enjoyed stable export turnover. In particular, rice is forecasted to be a highlight this year.

Of the six ASEAN nations, only Vietnam posted an increase in exports for 2020, up 7 percent to $282.66 billion, according to the Straits Times.

The Malaysian newspaper quoted data from the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) as saying that exports from six ASEAN countries, including Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam, fell 2.2 percent last year compared with 2019, with total exports of $1.35 trillion.

JETRO said Vietnam's exports to Japan dropped by 5.2 percent, but exports to the United States rose by 25.7 percent and to China by 18 percent.

However, Vietnam's growing trade surplus with Washington and Hanoi's interventions in the foreign exchange market prompted the US Treasury Department last December to label the country as a currency manipulator for the first time.

Among the other ASEAN nations mentioned in the report, the Philippines logged a 10.1 percent fall in exports, followed by a contraction of 6.0 percent in Thailand, 4.1 percent in Singapore and 2.6 percent each in Malaysia and Indonesia.

It said the combined trade surplus of the six countries tripled to $133.66 billion, as easing energy prices and shrinking domestic demand led to steeper declines in imports than exports.

Thailand's trade surplus surged 144.5 percent, compared with an 83.5 percent increase for Vietnam, Singapore 43.9 and Malaysia 25.6. The Philippines narrowed its trade deficit by 46.3 percent to $21.84 billion while Indonesia chalked up a trade surplus of $21.74 billion, a turnaround from a deficit of $3.6 billion in 2019.

Singapore accounted for 27.4 percent of the six countries' total trade by value last year, followed by Vietnam at 21.3 percent, Thailand 17.1 percent, Malaysia 16.5 percent, Indonesia 11.9 percent and the Philippines 5.8 percent.

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