AsemconnectVietnam - In the first seven months of 2026, Vietnam’s chemical trade recorded a positive surge in exports while simultaneously revealing a heavy reliance on imports.

Regarding exports, the turnover reached US$4.22 billion, a 29.68% increase, with the FDI sector playing a pivotal role. Conversely, chemical imports remained deeply dependent on Asian markets, particularly China; the latter accounted for 45.31% of the total import value, amounting to US$5.06 billion.
Regarding exports, according to Customs statistics, export turnover for the first seven months of 2026 reached US$4.22 billion, up 29.68% year-on-year.
Notably, the FDI sector continued to serve as the primary driver of chemical exports during this period, generating US$2.21 billion. This represented a robust 35.26% increase compared to the same period in 2025, raising the sector's share to 52.45%, significantly higher than the 50.28% recorded in the corresponding period of 2025.
ASEAN, China, Japan, South Korea, and India remained the key markets for Vietnam’s chemicals and chemical products; however, the market structure is undergoing a significant shift.
In the first seven months of 2026, exports to ASEAN totaled US$881.74 million, a 20.46% decline from the same period of 2025, causing the region's share to drop sharply from 33.99% to 20.85%. Nevertheless, ASEAN remained the largest market by turnover, with exports to Thailand reaching US$212.75 million, an increase of 42.98%. The exports to Malaysia reached US$211.31 million (up by 48.54%), Cambodia reached US$157.82 million (up by 57.54%), and the Philippines reached US$83.61 million (up by 77.74%); meanwhile, exports to Indonesia fell by 40.69%, and those to Laos plummeted by 98.36%. Sharp declines in several major markets dragged down the total export value for the ASEAN region.
China remained a key export market, with a seven-month turnover of US$735.62 million, an increase of 15.49%, accounting for 17.4% of total exports of chemicals and chemical products. In July alone, the exports to China reached US$135.66 million, up by 39.88% month-on-month and 26.63% year-on-year. This steady growth indicates sustained demand from China and underscores the market's continued importance as an outlet for Vietnam's chemical industry.
Notably, Japan and South Korea have emerged as the markets showing the most impressive growth. The exports to Japan over the seven-month period totaled US$599.33 million, a surge of 117.80%, raising its share of total exports from 8.44% to 14.17%; the July figure alone was US$140.30 million, up by 24.83% from June and 213.16% year-on-year. Similarly, the exports to South Korea reached US$299.46 million, up by 119.33%, increasing its share from 4.19% to 7.08%; July exports stood at US$63.25 million, rising 51.15% month-on-month and 149.68% year-on-year. The strong growth in these two markets serves as a bright spot in the export structure, helping to offset the decline in exports to ASEAN and demonstrating that Vietnamese enterprises are successfully expanding into markets with relatively high quality and technical standards.
In contrast, the trend for India has been less favorable; export turnover for the seven-month period reached US$309.52 million, a 10.63% decrease, causing its share of total exports to drop from 10.62% to 7.32%. Conversely, the United States is emerging as a market with significant potential, with turnover reaching US$226.13 million (up by 88.90%) and its share rising from 3.67% to 5.35%.
The exports to the EU also saw robust growth, reaching US$64.90 million (up by 67.96%) and increasing its share from 1.18% to 1.53%. Within the EU, the exports to Italy surged by 145.22%, while exports to Germany and the Netherlands rose by 51.56% and 22.24%, respectively. Although the current export volume to the EU remains modest, the high growth rate indicates significant room for Vietnamese enterprises to expand their market presence.
Beyond these key markets, several smaller markets also recorded significant growth over the seven-month period, including Canada (up by 144.95%), Hong Kong (up by 69.19%), Algeria (up by 86.71%), and Sri Lanka (up by 44.38%). These figures signal positive progress in export market diversification, helping businesses reduce their reliance on a few traditional markets.
Regarding imports, In July of 2026, Vietnam's imports of chemicals and chemical products continued to originate primarily from Asian markets. China held a dominant position, followed by ASEAN, South Korea, Japan, and Taiwan. This structure reflects the significant reliance of domestic production on raw materials, intermediate chemicals, and chemical products from Asia.
China remained the largest source of imports during the first seven months of 2026; the imports from China reached US$5.06 billion, a 28.53% increase year-on-year, accounting for 45.31% of the total import value, up notably from 43.22% during the same period the previous year. Thus, China has not only maintained its position as the primary supplier but is also expanding its market share of Vietnam's total chemical imports. This underscores the increasingly vital role of Chinese supplies for manufacturing sectors that utilize chemical inputs, while also raising concerns regarding supply concentration and the risks associated with reliance on a single market.
ASEAN ranked second with $1.51 billion, a 13.03% increase, and accounting for 13.50% of the total import value; however, its share declined from 14.64% during the same period in 2025. This trend indicates that while supplies from ASEAN continue to grow, the bloc's relative importance is diminishing as imports from China rise at a faster pace.
Notably, South Korea, Japan, and Taiwan remain key suppliers for Vietnam. Over the seven-month period, the import values reached $977.08 million from South Korea (up by 29.91%), $808.38 million from Japan (up by 22.84%), and $798.53 million from Taiwan (up by 21.65%). These three markets maintained relatively stable shares of 8.75%, 7.24%, and 7.15%, respectively. They constitute a vital group of suppliers for chemicals and chemical products essential to industries such as processing, electronics, plastics, and textiles, as well as manufacturing sectors requiring high-quality raw materials.
Regarding the EU, the imports during the first seven months of 2026 totaled $597.74 million,a 1.19% increase and representing 5.35% of the total import value, down from 6.49% in the same period of 2025. Within the bloc, Germany was the largest supplier with $299.15 million (down by 8.88%), while imports from Italy reached $73.51 million (up by 16.85%), France reached $57.36 million (up 19.76%), and the Netherlands reached $33.44 million (up by 10.34%). Overall, imports from the EU have grown at a relatively slow pace compared to Asian markets, causing the region's share to continue shrinking.
Alongside key markets, there are several sources showing high growth rates, albeit from a small base. Notably, imports from Turkey surged by 179.51% year-on-year in July, bringing the seven-month total to $30.52 million (up by 41.26%); imports from Australia reached $24.28 million (up by 51.05%), Canada $14.30 million (up by 63.14%), and Switzerland $48.72 million (up by 60.87%). However, as these markets each account for less than 0.5% of the total, they have not yet significantly altered the overall composition.
Source: VITIC