Trade surplus rises to new high

By Dat Nguyen August 30, 2020 | 07:34 pm PT

Workers manufacture garment products at a factory in southern Long An Province. Photo by VnExpress/Quynh Tran.

Vietnam achieved a record trade surplus of $11.9 billion in the first eight months as imports declined due to the fallout of the coronavirus pandemic.

Imports fell by 2.2 percent to $162.2 billion year-on-year while exports rose by 1.6 percent to $174.1 billion, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO).

Exports of five items exceeded $10 billion each: smartphones, electronics-computers, textile-garments, machinery-equipment, and footwear.

The U.S. was the largest market, buying $46.7 billion worth of exports, up 19 percent, followed by China and the E.U.

Imports to serve manufacturing fell by 1.7 percent to $152 billion, while those of consumer goods were down 9.2 percent to $10 billion.

China was the largest exporter to Vietnam ($49.3 billion), followed by South Korea, ASEAN and Japan.

"The Covid-19 pandemic continues to have negative impacts on Vietnam’s trade activities," the GSO said in a statement.

Last year the trade surplus had risen 21 percent to $3.4 billion.