An online meeting was held by the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City on September 5.
According to the MoIT, the total export value of garments and textiles over the past eight months is estimated to be nearly US$9 billion and it is likely to reach US$13 billion by the end of 2011.
However, small and medium-sized businesses in the industry still lack capital for expanding production as well as land for growing cotton and sufficient human resources.
Tran Quang Nghi, General Director of the Vietnam National Textile and Garment Group (Vinatex), said that the group has been affected by inflation and the lack of capital. Therefore, it has proposed that the MoIT continue essential investment channels in order to reach the targets set for 2015.
The MoIT forecasts that exports will increase about 25 percent this year, compared to 2010. However, they are also predicted to hit snags as the world economy remains unstable and some businesses have become involved in trade disputes.
MoIT Minister Vu Huy Hoang said, in order to boost exports, relevant organisations should provide businesses with more information about markets and new regulations, and actively tackle problems that can hinder trade cooperation.
Trade associations should become more active in fighting against unreasonable trade barriers for Vietnamese goods. The Vietnam Leather and Footwear Association (Lefaso), and the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) have done a good job so far but associations need to work together more closely to deal with new obstacles that have arisen recently in some countries, he added.
Over the past eight months, Vietnam imported more than US$8 billion in goods, accounting for 10.21 percent of the total import-export turnover. The import surplus in the period only increased by 13 percent, lower than the Government’s set target. The import surplus is gradually decreasing and products were imported primarily from China, ASEAN, the Republic of Korea and Taiwan.
VOV
Vietnamese
