Vietnam’s exports are set to surge by 21.9 per cent on-year to reach US$26.45 billion in the first ten months of 2005, while import spending in the same period is estimated to increase by 18.3 per cent on-year to US$30.52 billion, according to the government’s General Statistics Office.
In October alone, export earnings will expectedly reach US$2.85 billion, up US$50 million against the previous month, while the import bill will cost US$3.2 billion, up US$100 million over that in September.
In the first ten months of the year, the country’s exports are estimated to continue growing mainly due to sharp increases in sales of crude oil, coal, electronics and PCs, plastic products, rice, peanuts, vegetables and fruit and wood products.
Crude oil, which remains the country’s top forex earner, will fetch over US$6.23 billion, a 33.5 per cent rise from the same period last year, despite a 7.2 per cent decrease in export volume, at 14.96 million tons, due to soaring world prices.
The coal industry, meanwhile, will register the highest growth rate in export value in the reviewed period, at 80.3 per cent to US$502 million, while export volume is set to soar just 38.2 per cent on-year to around 12.95 million tons.
Industrial products such as plastic products, electronics and PCs, and electric wires and cables will also post high increases, at 42.9 per cent, 36.3 per cent and 33 per cent, to US$286 million, US$1.17 billion and US$402 million, respectively
Among major farm produce, rice shipments are predicted to jump 30 per cent in volume and 49 per cent in value to 4.61 million tons and US$1.24 billion.
Particularly, the second largest exported farm produce of coffee reported a rise of 10.2 per cent although volume fell by 8.9 per cent on-year.
The export of woodworks, vegetables and fruit and peanuts are expected to soar 43.1 per cent, 35.7 per cent and 27.3 per cent on-year to US$1.21 billion, US$196 million, and US$33 million, respectively.
The export value of the three important items namely garments and textiles, footwear and seafood, however, will post low increases of 7.2 per cent, 10.6 per cent and 12.4 per cent, respectively. They will bring home over US$3.95 billion, US$2.4 billion and nearly US$2.2 billion in the period.
There are five out of the 25 calculated key export items that will reap smaller revenues than the same period last year, including animal fat and vegetable oil (down 47.8 per cent), bicycles and spare parts (down 36.4 per cent), tea (down 15.2 per cent), children’s toys (down 13.2 per cent) and pepper (down 5.9 per cent).
The GSO also forecasts that the country will likely fetch at least US$31.2 billion from exports this year, a 17.7 per cent increase over last year and 1.6 per cent higher than the country’s annual export target.
In the reviewed period, imports into Vietnam are set to surpass national export earnings by US$3.85 billion, as the country still relies on imported fuels and production materials and consumes a large amount of products including automobiles, motorbikes, and milk and milk products.
Payments for fuel, steel and iron, plastics, chemicals, animal feed and materials, and wood and wood materials are estimated to soar 43.1 per cent, 27.2 per cent, 31.4 per cent, 29.5 per cent, 32.1 per cent per cent, and 27.3 per cent to US$4.19 billion, US$2.53 billion, US$1.22 billion, US$681 million, US$524 million, US$547 million, respectively.
The import of automobiles, motorbikes and milk and milk products will also cost 28.7 per cent, 32.1 per cent and 66.1.5 per cent more than last year’s period, to reach US$879 million, US$464 million and US$262 million, accordingly.
Outlays for materials for the garment and textile are also estimated to rise slightly by 2.5-4.8 per cent while that for raw cotton will fall by 13.9 per cent due to shrinking domestic production and exports.
Among all economic sectors in the country, foreign-invested firms remain the leading exporters with total revenues reaching US$15.2 billion since the beginning of this year, up 28.4 per cent on-year. Such companies will spend US$11.18 billion on imports in the period, up 24.8 per cent on-year.
Locally invested enterprises, meanwhile, will post combined export earnings of US$11.25 billion, up 14.1 per cent on-year, while their import bills will total US$19.34 billion, up 14.9 per cent on-year.
In an attempt to narrow the huge trade deficit so far this year, the government has recently called on ministries and other relevant agencies to take strong action to step up exports in the last five months of this year.
The government expects to keep this year’s trade deficit at less than 20 per cent of export turnover, or US$6.2-6.3 billion.
B.T
Vietnamese
