Fiery Samsung Note 7s fail to cut off Vietnam's mobile phone exports

By Ha Phuong October 20, 2016 | 06:17 pm PT

Vietnam saw an 11 percent jump in mobile phone exports during the first nine months of the year.

During the first nine months, Vietnam's mobile export value reached $25.5 billion, up 11 percent on-year, making it the most valuable export sector.

This might come as a surprise amid the Galaxy Note 7 fire scandal which forced Samsung to stop its production and recall all devices.

Previously, Nguyen Mai, president of Vietnam's Association of Foreign Invested Enterprises, said recalling the Note 7 could reduce Vietnam's exports by an estimated 0.5-1 percent this year.

But the company insists: "The Note 7 incident may not have any significant impact on our exports in 2016; in fact this year's export turnover is expected to increase."

Garments and textiles, and computers and electronic devices came second and third in terms of export value, reaching $18 billion and $13 billion respectively.

As of the third quarter of this year, Vietnam’s import-export turnover had reached over a quarter of a trillion dollars, up 4 percent compared to the same period last year, recording a trade surplus of $3.7 billion – the highest in the past seven years.

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