Vietnam posts 1.9bln USD trade surplus in first five months
Vietnam reported a trade surplus of 1.9 billion USD in the first five months of this year amid the ongoing complexity for global markets caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Hanoi (VNA)- Vietnam reported a trade surplus of 1.9 billionUSD in the first five months of this year amid the ongoing complexity forglobal markets caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to the General Statistics Office (GSO), export turnover reached 99.36 billion USD, down 1.7 percentyear-on-year.
The domestic sector’s export value was 33.3 billion USD, up 10.4 percent comparedto the same period last year, while the FDI sector’s exports, including crude oil,were valued at 66.06 billion USD, down 6.9 percent.
Commodities seeing strong growth in export value during the period included machinery,equipment, tools, and spare parts with 25 percent; computers, electronic products,and components with 22.1 percent; rice with 17.2 percent; coffee with 2.9 percent;and cashew nuts with 2.2 percent.
Those with declining turnover were telephones and components (8.8 percent), textiles(14.5 percent), footwear (4.6 percent), fruit and vegetables (10.3 percent), rubber(29.6 percent), and pepper (17.9 percent).
Import value in the first five months, meanwhile, reached 97.48 billion USD, down3.8 percent year-on-year, GSO said.
The US remained the largest importer of Vietnamese goods in the period, with turnoverreaching 24.6 billion USD, up 8.2 percent. It was followed by China with turnoverof 16.3 billion USD, up 20.1 percent.
Vietnam’s exports to the EU and ASEAN fell 12 percent and 13.4 percent, with turnoverof 12.9 billion USD and 9.4 billion USD, respectively.
After posting solid growth in the first quarter, Vietnam’s trade picture has been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic since April.Export turnover in April was just 19.7 billion USD, down 18.4 percent againstMarch and 3.5 percent year-on-year./.
Vietnam's export value saw a year-on-year increase of 4.7 percent to an estimated 82.9 billion USD in the first four months of this year, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO).
Vietnam ran a trade surplus of 343 million USD with India in the first quarter of this year, according to statistics released by the General Department of Vietnam Customs.
Vietnam recorded a trade surplus of 3.04 billion USD in the first four months of 2020 despite the negative impacts caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT).
Vietnam reported a trade deficit of nearly 1 billion USD in the first half of May as exports reached only 8.22 billion USD – the lowest level since the beginning of this year (excluding the first half of January when the Tet holiday fell on), the General Department of Customs announced has announced.
A key change in the draft decree is a provision requiring bank transfers for gold transactions valued at 20 million VND (765 USD) and above, to enhance transparency and verify customer identities.
In the first four months of 2025, trade turnover between Vietnam and Cambodia surpassed 3 billion USD, marking a 7% increase compared to the same period in 2024.
On June 19 alone, a total of 2,005 trucks completed customs clearance at Lang Son’s border gates — the highest single-day figure ever recorded in the province. Of these, 634 carried exports and 1,371 imports.
The OECD Economic Surveys: Vietnam 2025 report focuses on analysing the country’s macroeconomic fundamentals, the impact of international integration on attracting foreign investment and trade, and the country’s prospects for developing a low-carbon economy.
Antoine Colin, Senior Vice President for Global Supply Chain Digital Transformation & Resilience at HP Inc., affirmed HP’s strategic commitment to building a supply chain and ecosystem in Vietnam and the region.
Deputy Director General of the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT)’s Trade Promotion Agency Bui Quang Hung emphasised that logistics has evolved from a technical function into a core capability for Vietnamese exporters to maintain their competitive advantage in the US market.
A trade official has suggested companies work closely with shipping lines, airlines, and freight forwarders to monitor routes, transit times, and potential surcharges while exploring broader cargo insurance to cover risks like war and terrorism.
In addition to institutional reform, the agency is also rolling out key solution groups to combat counterfeit goods, imitations, and intellectual property infringements in the digital environment.
The event, co-organised by the Vietnam Trade Office in the UK and TT Meridian, a local importer of Vietnamese fresh produce, aims to build a national lychee brand and encourage broader recognition of Vietnamese fruits in a competitive, high-end market.
The industry's performance has been powered by bold investments in modern production lines, enabling Vietnamese firms to produce complicated products which were exclusive to advanced economies.
Outcomes of ABAC III will shape ABAC’s final policy recommendations to be submitted to the ABAC-APEC leaders’ dialogue, scheduled to take place in the Republic of Korea this November.
This is the second year the magazine has released the ranking, which is based on total revenue and key financial indicators of enterprises from seven countries in the region: Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, and Cambodia.
At the summit, publishing, tech, and media sectors will discuss emerging trends, business models, and sustainable solutions for digital publishing development in Vietnam.
This year’s “Vietnam Goods Week” marks a significant milestone as it is being held simultaneously for the first time in four locations across Asia: Japan, Hong Kong (China), Cambodia, and Malaysia, from June 19 - 22.
According to NordCham Vietnam Chairman Thue Quist Thomasen, the Vietnamese Government’s commitment to achieving net-zero emissions by 2050 is both a challenge and an opportunity for businesses to contribute to green and sustainable growth.
The analysis from an investment perspective shows that the economy’s growth has been heavily capital‑driven, yet efficiency remains low as reflected by Vietnam’s Incremental Capital-Output Ratio (ICOR) being significantly higher than global and regional averages. This underscores the imperative to enhance capital‑use efficiency.
Processing shrimps for export (Photo: VNA) 
