Vietnam posts US$2.71 billion trade surplus in six months

Vietnam produced a trade surplus of US$2.71 billion in the first six months of 2018 thanks to the performance of the FDI sector, the General Statistics Office (GSO) announced on June 29.

The export revenue of phones and components reached US$22.5 billion in the first six months of 2018 (illustrative image)
The export revenue of phones and components reached US$22.5 billion in the first six months of 2018 (illustrative image)

According to the GSO, the domestic sector reported a trade deficit of US$12.94 billion while the FDI sector enjoyed a trade surplus (including crude oil) of US$15.65 billion, resulting in an overall trade surplus of US$2.71 billion in the six-month period.

During the January-June period, Vietnam posted total export revenue of US$113.93 billion, up 16% over the same period in 2017 and a total import revenue of more than US$111.22 billion, up 10% over the same period in 2017.

The country also witnessed 20 types of goods with export revenues exceeding US$1 billion each, accounting for 85.6% of the total export revenue of Vietnam.

The exports of key goods continued to rise compared to the corresponding period of last year. The export revenue of phones and components reached US$22.5 billion in the six months, up 15.4% compared to the same period last year, followed by export revenue of electronic products, computers and components at US$13.5 billion, a year-on-year increase of 15.7%.

This was followed by garments and textiles with US$13.4 billion, a year-on-year increase of 13.8%, and machinery and equipment with US$7.8 billion, a year-on-year increase of 30.6%.

The export revenue of footwear, transport vehicles and components, and wood and wood products also recorded higher revenue compared to the same period in 2017.