AsemconnectVietnam - In the first 4 months of 2023, Vietnam’s total import-export turnover reached 206.76 billion USD, the country had a trade surplus of 7.56 billion USD.

According to the latest data announced by the General Department of Customs, in April of this year, Vietnam’s export turnover reached 27.86 billion USD, down by 6.2% compared to the previous month.
In the month, there were 7 groups of export products with a turnover of 1 billion USD or more/group. However, there were 6 of 7 groups saw a decrease in export turnover, including phones and components; computers, electronic products and components; machinery, equipment, tools and spare parts; textile; means of transport and spare parts; wood and wood products.
Footwear was the only key export group with positive growth with a turnover of 1.85 billion USD, up by 17.9% over the previous month.
For the whole 4 months, the total export turnover reached 107.16 billion USD, down by 13% over the same period last year and most of the key export commodity groups decreased.
Import and export are declining sharply in many commodity groups and markets. According to information from the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), the statistics figures from China Customs showed that the country's seafood import demand is recovering strongly after opening in early 2023.
However, Vietnam's seafood exports to the Chinese market have not yet recovered. There are reasons from market factors and also from internal forces.
By the end of April, Vietnam's seafood exports to China were estimated at 435 million USD, down by 37%. In the first 4 months of the year, only in February, the country’s exports grew by 24%, while in January, March and April, the exports decreased.
The top 5 seafood products exported to China the most include pangasius, anchovies, white leg shrimp, black tiger shrimp and surimi. In which, pangasius accounted for 55% of seafood exports to this market. Therefore, the decrease in pangasius exports to China has affected the general trend. The exports of white leg shrimp, fish cakes - surimi and many other products still fell deeply.
In the opposite direction, the country’s imports of goods in April of this year only reached 25.2 billion USD, down by 11% compared to the previous month. In general, in the first 4 months of the year, the country’s import value reached 99.6 billion USD, down by 17.7%.
Notably, the key commodity groups and important inputs for export industries such as phones and components; computers, electronic products and components; raw materials for textiles and garments, leather and footwear, etc fell deeply at double digits. Even phones and components decreased by 66%, reaching only 2.52 billion USD.
Generally, in the first four months of the year, the total import-export turnover reached 206.76 billion USD, the trade balance reached a surplus of 7.56 billion USD.
In order to promote import and export activities, the Ministry of Industry and Trade said that in the coming time, it will focus on renewing and strengthening trade promotion activities towards new and potential markets such as India and Africa, the Middle East, Latin America, Eastern Europe, etc., and markets less affected by inflation and positive growth (ASEAN). At the same time, the ministry will also focus on exploiting new markets where the middle class is growing such as E7 emerging markets (China, India, Turkey, Russia, Mexico and Indonesia); Halal market (Middle East, Malaysia, Brunei).
At the same time, promote effective exploitation of Free Trade Agreements (FTAs). Facilitating and enhancing digital transformation in the granting of preferential C/O certificates of origin, thereby supporting businesses to take advantage of commitments in FTAs.
CK
Source: VITIC/congthuong.vn