Processed industrial goods ranked first among all exports with revenue of US$66.9 billion in the first 11 months of 2012, accounting for 64.3 percent of the
country's total export revenue and growing 25 percent compared to the
same time in 2011. Exports experiencing a high growth in the first 11
months of 2012 included telephones of different kinds and telephone components that brought in revenue of US$11.4 billion (double that in the first 11 months of 2011),
computers and electronic products and components (US$6.9 billion, up 67
percent), machinery, equipment, tools and spare parts (US$5.1 billion,
up 29.8 percent), means of transport and related spare parts (US$4.1
billion, up 31 percent), and cameras, video cameras and related
components (US$1.5 billion, up 160 percent). Most of these are exports from foreign direct investment (FDI) businesses.
Farm produce and seafood exports yielded US$19.2 billion in the first 11 months of 2012, accounting for 18.5 percent of the country's total export revenue in the same period and increasing 6.6 percent over the same period of 2011. Coffee exports in November increased in quantity compared to October because a coffee
harvest season was in November. Due to decreased prices, rice export
fell 1.8 percent in value but increased 9.7 percent in quantity, while
rubber exports dropped 11.5 percent in value and increased 29 percent
in quantity.
Fuel and mineral exports in November increased 8.4 percent in value compared to October. They brought in total revenue of an estimated US$10.7 billion in the first 11 months of 2012, accounting for 10.3 percent of the country's total export revenue in the same period and up 3.7 percent from the same time last year.
Imports in the first 11 months of 2012 totaled US$104 billion, up 6.8 percent from the same time in 2011.
In the first 11 months of this year, Vietnam exported US$14 million more than it imported.
The Ministry of Industry
and Trade estimated that export revenue will reach US$114 billion (18
percent higher than 2011) and imports will total US$115 billion in 2012.
FDI businesses' export revenue kept growing well, while that of domestic
businesses tended to increase more slowly. This shows that domestic
businesses encountered more difficulties and were less competitive than
FDI companies.
At an online meeting held on December 3, 2012 by the Ministry of Industry and Trade, representatives from the Vietnam Association of Seafood
Exporters and Producers (VASEP), the Vietnam Food Association and other
organizations said they felt worried about the unsustainable stability
and disadvantages of export activities. They proposed that authorities
pave the way for businesses to access preferential loans and strengthen
foreign relations and trade negotiations and promotion for market
expansion, and issue policies on controlling domestic businesses'
unhealthy competition./.
Source: VEN