April's Footwear Export Falls 0.4 per cent Due to EC's Duties

Vietnam’s footwear exports reduced by 0.4 per cent on-month in April to US$260 million, mainly due to the punitive tariffs imposed by the European Commission (EC) on Vietnamese leather shoes since April 7, according to the Ministry of Trade (MoT).

 

Shoes shipments to large markets including the US and Canada have been increasing, but the fall in orders from Europe, which usually accounts for two-thirds of Vietnam’s footwear exports – have lessened the total revenues.

 

The EC duties have caused a host of difficulties for Vietnamese footwear makers, as local leather shoes have become less competitive, said Nguyen Duc Thuan, vice chairman of the Vietnam Leather and Footwear Association (Lefaso).

 

Thuan added the EC’s preliminary decision has put local shoe exporters in greater difficulties in competing with rivals from Thailand, the Philippines and India to gain orders from the EU.

 

However, domestic shoemakers have managed to gain increasing orders of children’s and sports shoes from the EU, the US and Canada. These shoes are not subject to the anti-dumping tariff, which is set at 4 per cent from April 7 this year under a phased-in period of six months that will finally see a duty as high as 16.8 per cent.

 

Despite the fall in April, total export sales in the first four months of this year still increased a hefty 21.3 per cent on-year to US$1.07 billion.

 

Lefaso has called on footwear exporters to focus on high quality products and expanding markets to earn more profits and minimize the impact caused by the anti-dumping decision.