Vietnam Spending on Petroleum Products Jumps 18 per cent in First Half
Vietnam’s expenditure on petroleum products this year to date is forecast to increase 18 per cent on year to US$2.9 billion in spite of a falling import volume, the government’s General Statistics Office (GSO) said.
To date, the Southeast Asian nation imported 5.6 million tons of petroleum products, down 8.7 per cent on year, it said.
“The reason for the escalating spending on the distillated fuel is the global soaring price in the past two years,” the office said through the Dau Tu (Investment) Newspaper, the mouthpiece of the Ministry of Planning and Investment.
“Meanwhile, the falling import volume is partially an achievement of a thrift program,” it added. The government has ordered all State-funded organs to significantly cut down on petrol expenditures.
Without operational refineries, all petroleum products used in Vietnam are imported. The first refinery, which is being built in central Quang Ngai province, is scheduled for completion in 2009.
However, the soaring spending on refined oil is dimmed by a 21 per cent increase in crude oil export to $4.14 billion in the first six months of this year.
The country was set to ship 8.2 million tons of crude oil abroad between January and June.
Vietnam expects to cut the petroleum import volume to only 4 million tons out of the total needed 18-19 million tons by 2010 when a number of refineries become operation.
Investment
Vietnamese
