(Vietnam Logistics Review) Although there are two months to the end of 2017, with satisfactory happening, our country’s import - export target will be over 14% over the target that the Assembly assigned.
Statistic from the General Department of Customs showed, to October 15th, the country’s total import- export turnover reached USD 325.41bn, an increase of 20.9% (relatively increased USD 56.35bn) year over year. Trade balance in phase 1 October 2017 had a surplus of USD 707m, bringing our country’s trade balance to October 15th, 2017 to the surplus of USD 1.09bn.
A Government’s report at the 4th meeting session, Assembly term XIV showed import- export turnover growth will reached 14.4% (6% - 7% assigned by the Assembly). Ratio between surplus and import- export turnover reached around 1.5% (3.5% assigned by the Assembly)- an excess to assigned plan by the Assembly. The report showed import- export turnover in August and September reached over USD 19bn, the highest so far.
Forecast from the Ministry of Industry- Commercial showed import- export turnover of 2017 is able to reach USD 207bn, an increase of 17.2%. Import estimatedly reaches USD 208bn, an increase of 19%. Surplus is USD 1bn, equally to 0.5% export turnover.
Many experts said this was thanks to great attempts from the Government, ministries, sector and the business community. In the first six months, Vietnam’s trade balance experienced rather huge deficit, especially in the first four months of the year, higher than target assigned by the Assembly. An explanation for the grey painting of import- export is a slow world economy bouncing back, fierce competitions among countries, increasing disbursements for FDI projects making export difficulties, the higher needs for exporting machines, equipment, spare parts, steel and metals…
However, thanks to attempts of carrying out series of synchronous solutions from functional organizations as removing difficulties for enterprises, creating cargo source for export, well informing free trade agreements, cutting or simplifying administration procedures, surplus has been controlled, gradually balancing trade balance, export deficit appearing from the second half of July 2017 to now with USD 233m and keeping increasing so far.
Ideas from Export Office, the Ministry of Industry- Commercial, at the ends of the year, export turnover keeps upgrading thanks to exporting goods as computers, electronic products and spare parts, cell phones, and manufacturing industrial group.
The reason was thanks to the fact that many manufacturing projects have completed. Besides, in August, enterprises imported goods that are input materials as petroleum, textile materials and accessories, plastic, corn, rubber, cotton and steel…Export growth will increase in some industrial products as textile, shoes and furniture. Besides, goods of agriculture, forestry and aquaproducts are forecast to have a high increase in months at the end of the years.
In import, Phan Sinh, Deputy Director of Customs Information Technology and Statistics Department said import in the end of the year will have a slightly higher increase of around USD 100m for equipment serving Cat Linh- Ha Dong railroad.
On evaluating import-export target of 2017, Assembly’s Economic Committee emphasized although there were many good resulted, there should be more specific evaluation on factors and goods that had great contribution to export in 9 months and that are able to be carried out in the last months of the years, especially those from FDI group, and on trend of increasing surplus due to implementing roadmap of reducing taxes in accordance to commitments from international trade agreements. For example, in 9 months, Vietnam had a surplus of USD 23.3bn from Korea, an increase of 57.7% yearover-year. Korea is the largest surplus market of Vietnam; next, surplus from China, USD 19.7bn, a decrease of 5.6%; surplus from ASEAN, USD 4.6bn.
There should be solution to increase market share from enterprises in the country for export currently depends on enterprises with FDI. Statistics from the Customs showed to October 15th, 2017, FDI group reached import-export turnover of over USD215.88bn- an increase of 24.4%, equally to an increase of USD 36.08bn year-overyear, accounting for 66.3% of the country’s import-export turnover. Trade balance of the group of FDI enterprises in the first half of October 2017 had a surplus of USD 1.6bn, bringing its surplus of the group from the beginning of the year to October 15th, 2017, to over USD 15.55bn.
