Vietnam’s Jan-Oct Imports from China Reach Nearly US$13 Bln

Vietnam reportedly spent up to US$12.87 billion on importing commodities from its neighboring country of China in the past ten months of this year, up 42.3 per cent on-year said the Vietnam Trade Office in China.

 

Among import staples, machines topped the list with over US$3.5 billion, followed by steel and iron with US$2.7 billion and garments and textiles with US$2 billion, said the office without giving out on-year comparison.

 

Chinese goods have become more and more popular in Vietna for years but several of them including plastics, clothes, footwear and construction brick have been flooding local markets in recent months, said local traders.

 

Apart from good designs, prices of Chinese goods are offered at half or one-third lower than locally-made ones that made them easy penetrate into the world’s 13th populous country with a large number of low-income people, traders in Ho Chi Minh said.

 

According to domestic economists, this is only a startup of Chinese goods’ influx in Vietnam amid the global economic crisis.

 

Chinese clothes will further cover local markets in coming time when the import tax will be slashed to 20 per cent from 50 per cent in line with WTO’s commitment, said an official from the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (Vitas).

 

The Ministry of Finance should use tax tool to limit import flow from China to narrow the country’s growing trade gap with its neighbors and help local producers to survive amid Chinese goods’ influx.

 

China is among the top trade partners with Vietnam. China buys up to 15 per cent of Vietnam’s exports, behind the U.S. with 20 per cent and the EU with 25 per cent. Bilateral trade is expected to hit US$21 billion this year and jump to US$25 billion by 2010, Vietnamese state media said. (Youth)