March trade deficit jumps
Trucks load goods through the Lao Cai Border Gate. Viet Nam’s trade deficit in March rose 54.3 per cent over the previous month to US$547 million. — VNA/VNS Photo Tran Viet
HA NOI (VNS)— Viet Nam’s trade deficit last month reached US$547 million, increasing 54.3 per cent over February, according to the General Department of Customs.
The department’s figures showed that the country’s total trade turnover last month was $22.6 billion, including $11.57 billion worth of imports and $11.03 billion in export value.
The General Statistics Office had forecast that the trade deficit would only be about $273 million last month, but in reality the figure was double that of the forecast.
For the last two weeks of March alone, the trade deficit was at $460 million, accounting for 8.7 per cent of export earnings during the period.
Export turnover of items including jewellery fell by $236 million, crude oil by $142 million, electronics by $65 million, mobile phones by $64 million and coffee by $49 million.
Export turnover for shoes, equipment and spare parts rose by $31 million.
As a result, the country’s total trade turnover during the first quarter of the year was $29.76 billion, showing a year-on-year increase of 19.8 per cent while imports totalled $29.49 billion, increasing by 17.7 per cent against the same period last year.
The country’s exports therefore surpassed imports by $270 million. Foreign direct investment businesses accounted for $1.19 billion of import-export turnover during the period, accounting for a half of the country’s total import-export turnover. — VNS