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Major cities battle trade deficits
The capital faced a trade deficit of up to US$2.91 million while HCM City gained a trade surplus of $58 million in the first quarter this year, according to statistic office estimates.
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| Workers of Gia Dinh Fabric Garment and Trading Co in HCM City produce clothing for export. The capital faced a modest trade deficit of over US$2.9 million, while HCM City posted a trade surplus of $58 million in the first quarter this year. |
The Ha Noi Statistics Department said the capital fetched an export turnover of roughly $697 million in March, down 13 per cent over the same period last year. It raised the city's export figure in the first three months to more than $2 billion, down 2.8 per cent.
The city, meanwhile, spent roughly $1.82 billion on imports in March, down 14 per cent over the same period last year. The capital's import value in the first quarter totalled $4.94 billion, down 15.4 per cent.
The department attributed the city's export decrease to reducing demand in importing countries, especially in the US, China and the EU.
The city's export of agricultural products in the first quarter decreased sharply by more than 40 per cent against the same period last year. Rice exports during this time were valued at only $69.4 million, down 42.2 per cent.
HCM City, the country's largest economic hub, spent roughly $6.2 billion on imports in the first three months, up 7.5 per cent over the same period last year. It earned nearly $6.25 billion from exports in the period, up 8.7 per cent over the same period last year, thanks to a rising export turnover based on several key staples.
Despite a decrease of 7.8 per cent in volume, export value of crude oil in the first three months still surged 9 per cent to $1.68 billion thanks to a price hike of 18.2 per cent.
HCM City's garment and textile export value also surged 8.9 per cent to $545.8 million. However, the industry's exports to the EU market was showing signs of decrease, said Vice Chairman of the Viet Nam Textile and Apparel Association Pham Xuan Hong, adding that exports in the first three months were estimated to have slid 25-30 per cent over the same period last year.
Export turnover of seafood and footwear also surged 7.5 per cent and 8.6 per cent to $98.5 million and $142.6 million, respectively.
vietnamnews
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