Vietnam begins year with $1.3 bln trade surplus

By Minh Son February 28, 2021 | 10:31 pm PT

Containers lined up at Cat Lai Port in HCMC. Photo by Shutterstock/Hien Phung Thu.

Vietnam achieved a trade surplus of $1.3 billion in the first two months of the year as both exports and imports rose sharply.

Exports were up 23 percent year-on-year to $48.5 billion, 76.4 percent of them by foreign companies, according to the General Statistics Office.

Exports of heavy industry products and minerals were worth $26.6 billion, up 27.8 percent, while those of light industry and handicraft products were worth $17.3 billion, up 18.8 percent.

Agricultural and forestry product exports rose 22.2 percent to $3.6 billion. The biggest markets were the U.S., China, the E.U., ASEAN, South Korea, and Japan.

Imports increased by 26 percent to $47.2 billion, 66.9 percent by foreign companies. Consumer goods accounted for nearly $3 billion.

China was the biggest source of imports ($17.3 billion), followed by South Korea, ASEAN, Japan, the E.U., and the U.S.

In 2020, Vietnam total exports reached $281.5 billion, up 6.5 percent year-on-year, while imports was $262.4 billion, up 3.6 percent.