“Vietnam’s exports increased in both volume and value in the first nine months of 2011. With most of the sectors posting strong export increases, the country’s total export revenue is expected to reach a record high of US$95 billion this year,” said Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade, Nguyen Thanh Bien, at a meeting on October 11 in HCM City that reviewed performances in the first nine months and preview activities in the last three months.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade said the total export turnover hit US$70 billion in the first nine months of the year, up 35.4 percent year on year, including US$8.3 billion in September - a year on year rise of 33.6 percent. The group of fuels and minerals posted the highest growth of 45.3 percent, reachingUS$8.4 billion. The group of agricultural - forest - fishery products rose 39.8 percent to climb to US$14.9 billion. The group of industrial products jumped 32.5 percent to an impressive income of US$46.7 billion (accounting for 66.6 percent of the country’s total exports). As regards single product, apparels remained the biggest forex earner for the country with US$10.5 billion from January to September, up 31.1 percent against the same period of 2010.
As regards export markets, shipment value to Africa and Asia - Pacific saw highest growth. Exports to Africa topped the chart with the growth of 170 percent over the same period of 2010 (largely due to earnings from gold exported to South Africa), followed by Asia - Pacific (up 42 percent), European market (27.2 percent), the Americas (23.2 percent), and Oceania (3.7 percent.)
The impressive data proved the rightness of solutions and policies to spur production, business and export activities. Outcomes are expected to be better as lending rates tend to decrease, and exchange rates are stable.
Deputy Minister Nguyen Thanh Bien said the export growth outpaced import growth in the first nine months. Exports expanded 35.4 percent while imports rose 26.9 percent, helping narrow trade gap. Remarkably, most exports grew up in value. Given the past performances and current favourable conditions, Vietnam is forecast to earn US$8 billion a month from now till the end of the year, fetching US$94 - 95 billion this year, a miracle in relation to US$71.6 billion in 2010. The optimistic export has helped fill trade deficit, stabilise production and ensure social security.
However, contrary to Deputy Minister Bien’s optimistic viewpoints, exporters said the exportation in the last months of the year is uncertain because most Vietnamese companies are small and medium-sized and they are too vulnerable to changes, interest rates remain high, materials and inventories are increasing and some countries are applying trade remedies. Some key export sectors are seeing a drop in new orders. Particularly, garment and footwear companies fall short of orders to fill up production because the European debt crisis is biting into consumer spending.
To be more specific about these difficulties, Mr Nguyen Cong Hoang, Deputy General Director of Vietnam National Coffee Corporation (Vinacafe), said the coffee harvesting season is coming but the export outlook is largely dependent on banks’ credit policies. Mr Tran Quoc Manh, Vice Chairman of the Handicraft and Wood Industry Association of Ho Chi Minh City (HAWA), although woodwork export reached US$2.84 billion in the first nine months of this year, up 16 percent year on year, the rate of returns of the industry is falling down because input costs are rising too fast while export prices are kept in according to contracts. Mr Dang Hoang Giang, Secretary General of the Vietnam Cashew Association, said cashew exporters had to sell at lower prices than expected because they had to settle bank loans.
Anticipating those difficulties, representatives of business associations asked competent authorities to take more practical measures to support businesses, particularly small and medium-sized ones. They requested the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) and other authorities to take action to stabilise foreign exchange rate, lower interest rates and widen credit accesses for businesses. The Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Procedures (VASEP) proposed the Government to impose soft tariffs on imported seafood materials while lowering export taxes on some seafood items (shrimp, octopus, squid, etc) to 1 percent from the current 18-20 percent.
Concluding the meeting, Deputy Minister Nguyen Thanh Bien said the Ministry of Industry and Trade will take all requests into consideration and seek out best solutions to support local businesses.
Hong Hanh
Vietnamese
