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RULES OF ORIGIN: THE BIGGEST BARRIER OF TEXTILE EXPORTS TO THE EU

VCN- At the Vietnam Textile and Garment Conference on rules of origin in the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) co-organized by the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (Vitas) and EU-MUTRAP on 20th April 2017 in HCM City, experts said that the compliance with rules of origin was the biggest obstacle for exporters to enjoy tax incentives in this market.

rules of origin the biggest barrier of textile exports to the eu
Textile production at Saigon Garment Company No.3.

Regarding textile exports to the EU in recent years, Ms. Dang Phuong Dung, the Deputy Head of the Vitas Advisory Board and EU-MUTRAP expert said that although the EU was the largest textile import market in the world, it was only the second largest textile export market of Vietnam (after the US). The growth rate of the textile and garment export turnover to the EU as well as the proportion of imported textile and garment into the EU have been still very small, which shows the weak competitiveness of Vietnamese garment products. The negotiation and signing of EVFTA are to create more favourable conditions for domestic businesses to improve their competitiveness in this market.

According to Ms. Dang Phuong Dung, the export of textile and garment products to the EU in the past time faced difficulties due to strict criteria of the EU market with small orders, not as large as the US. In addition, the importers tend to buy package products instead of processing goods, so most Vietnamese businesses which are not competitive find is difficult to access.

EVFTA will create more favourable conditions for domestic enterprises to expand their market thanks to preferential tax policies. However, according to Ms. Dang Phuong Dung, rules of origin were the biggest obstacles for textile and garment to enter the EU market from when EVFTA took effect because Vietnam mainly imports goods from China. In recent years, Vietnam has signed many FTAs with ASEAN, Korea and Japan on the rules of origin on the fabrics, but the ability to use rules of origin of Vietnam is very limited.

EVFTA, however, applies accumulation rules, which allows Vietnamese exporters to use textile from a third country that has signed an FTA with Vietnam and the EU (South Korea as an example). This is a good opportunity for Vietnam because in the future, the ASEAN countries will increase sign FTA with the EU, and Vietnam can expand the source of materials to enjoy tax incentives.

Ms. Vu Thi Phuong, the Deputy Secretary General of the Vietnam Textile and Garment Association, said that in the first two months of 2017, textile and garment export turnover to the EU market reached $US 480 million, an increase of nearly 7% compared to the same period of 2016. This is considered to be a positive sign for textile and garment exports to this market. Although the proportion of textile and garment exports to the EU is still low (only accounting for 1.9% of total EU textile and garment imports by 2015), textile and apparel imports into the EU are subject to a high tax rate of 8-12. %, But with EVFTA, the EU will be a potential market for export garment and textile. Since this agreement takes effect, many products will be reduced to 0% and after 7 years, all exports to the EU market will be reduced to 0%.

According to Mr. Stefan Moser, the EU-MUTRAP expert, in order to meet the requirements of EVFTA rules of origin, exports to the EU must meet the requirements of fabric produced in Vietnam or the EU, or from one-third country which has had FTAs with Vietnam and EU. However, the rate of utilization of bilateral rules of origin (EU imports of fabric for production and re-export to the EU) is very low because the price of EU fabrics is very expensive with a high transportation cost.

According to Mr. Stefan Moser, insufficiently processing activities such as preservation, unpacking, assembly of packages and polishing do not meet the requirements of rules of origin, so in the case where enterprises still declare and export to the EU, they may be detected and fined by the European Regulatory Authority.

According to experts, the opportunity from EVFTA is very high, but domestic enterprises must meet the requirements of rules of origin to take advantage of the opportunity. Meanwhile, according to Ms. Vu Thi Phuong, the practical use of tax incentives from the signed FTA has been quite low. Currently, there are only 35% of Vietnam’s export products make full use of the opportunities provided by FTAs, while 65% are still subject to high tariffs. In order to support enterprises, the Vietnam Textile and Garment Association has actively propagated and provided information on the market for enterprises to prepare. “The regulations of the FTAs are increasingly tight and enterprises must carefully prepare to take advantage of opportunities from integration”, Ms. Phuong emphasized.

By Nguyen Hue/ Hoang Anh

Source: http://customsnews.vn/

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VEGETABLE EXPORTS REACH NEARLY 190 BILLION VND PER DAY

VCN- Vegetable exports continue to be an impressive bright spot in the export activities of the first two months of 2017 in Vietnam with a high growth of double-digit, bringing the amount of nearly 190 billion vnd per day.

vegetable exports reach nearly 190 billion vnd per day
The Tan Thanh border gate – exporting point of vegetables in fruits to China. Photo: Thai Binh.

73% of vegetable exports to China

According to the latest statistics from the General Department of Vietnam Customs, by 15th April 2017, the total value of fruit and vegetable exports reached $US 857 million, an increase of nearly 30% compared to the same period in 2016 (reaching $US 661 million), equivalent to an increase of $US 196 million.

Thus, on average, each day vegetable exports brought about $US 8.2 million, equivalent to the amount of nearly 190 billion vnd per day.

As a result, vegetables and fruits continue to maintain the third largest commodity exports in agricultural and aquatic products in Vietnam (after seafood and coffee).

Notably, vegetables and fruits had a stronger growth rate than seafood (only 7.8%) and coffee (21%). Thus, the difference between vegetables and the two above commodity groups was narrowed down.

Regarding the export market, Vietnamese vegetables have been exported to many countries and regions in the world such as Asia, Europe, and America. In particular, there have been many markets requiring high quality such as the United States, Japan, Australia, South Korea and European countries such as Germany and Netherlands.

However, the biggest market of Vietnamese vegetables and fruits was still China. According to the latest statistics from the General Department of Vietnam Customs, exported fruits and vegetables to China reached $US 512 million, accounting for 73% of the total export value of this commodity in the same period.

At the local border near China, the area of exported vegetables and fruits were concentrated mainly at Tan Thanh border gate area (Lang Son) and Lao Cai border gate area.

Diversifying the market

Regarding the results on the export of vegetables recently, on 24th April 2017, speaking to a reporter of the Customs Newspaper, Dr. Nguyen Huu Dat – the executive of the Vietnam Fruit and Vegetable Association (VINAFRUIT) said that the results of fruit and vegetable exports were very positive.

According to Dr. Nguyen Huu Dat, the fruit and vegetable exports have been increasingly flourishing for many reasons.

Firstly, the trade promotion and market expansion by State management agencies have been creating positive results. As a result, Vietnamese vegetables and fruits have started to promote in the fastidious markets such as the United States, Japan, South Korea or EU countries.

“Although the value of export turnover to these markets is not high, but the export of vegetables to the fastidious markets with a high quality will increase the prestige for Vietnamese vegetables and fruits”, Dr. Dat said.

On the other hand, according to Dr. Nguyen Huu Dat, an increase in the demand for fruits and vegetables in the world was an opportunity for export growth of this product in Vietnam now as well as in the coming time.

In particular, an important cause which was emphasized by Dr. Nguyen Huu Dat was the role of scientists, the business community, producers and farmers in the effort to diversify the design and quality, brand promotion for Vietnamese vegetables and fruits.

“Although the fruit and vegetable export businesses have limited financial resources, they have efforts in promoting the brand and seeking the export markets. On the other hand, in the past two years, there has been a close connection among the exporters, the farmers, and the producers. Therefore, the quality and design of the products have been increasingly improved, thereby creating the prestige for Vietnamese vegetables and fruits in the world market”, the VINAFRUIT leader said.

In 2016, vegetables and fruits brought $US 2.457 billion, with a growth rate of 33.6% compared to 2015. This was the third largest export commodity in the field of agriculture (after fishery and coffee) and was the second fastest growing commodity group in the total of 45 key export categories which were listed by the General Department of Vietnam Customs (after gemstones, precious metals and products with a growth rate of 44.4%).

By Thai Binh/ Hoang Anh

Source: http://customsnews.vn/

 

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VIETNAM’S EXPORTS STILL DOMINATED BY FDI FIRMS

The turnover of foreign invested firms continues to dominate Vietnamese exports despite a decline seen in the first half of April latest statistics show

vietnams exports still dominated by fdi firms

According to the General Department of Customs (GDC), as of April 15, exports by FDI firms reached nearly US$10.87 billion, down 13% month-on-month.

Despite the fall, however, the sector accounted for 65.1% of the total export turnover this year (January 1 to April 15, 2017) at US$70.05 billion, which marked an increase of 10.95% over the same period in 2016.

FDI firms in the country now have an accumulated 2017 trade surplus of US$3.92 billion, making them significant contributors to national export value.

Meanwhile, Vietnam’s total export from the April 1 to April 15 was US$16.37 billion, a month-on-month drop of 13.9%.

This took total exports for this year to more than US$107.58 billion, an increase of nearly US$16.76 billion or 18.5% over the same period in 2016.

However, the months leading to April 15 have seen a trade deficit of US$2.56 billion, about 4.9% of export value.

On the other hand, Vietnam’s imports from January 1 to April 15, 2017 reached US$55.07 billion, up 23.1% over the same period last year.

Accumulated import turnover for FDI firms reached more than US$33.06 billion, up 23.7% year on year, accounting for 60% of the nation’s total imports.

The GDC report said the manufacturing sector will grow significantly with the opening of new FDI factories, on top of a record FDI disbursement of US$15.8 billion in 2016. The construction sector should benefit in particular from higher FDI disbursements as also continued public investments in the energy and transport sectors.

The first quarter has also saw foreign firms add US$7.71 billion in newly registered and supplemental capital. They increased their capital contribution and share purchases by 77.6% over the same period in 2016, with US$2.9 billion for 493 newly registered projects and US$3.9 billion for adding capital to 223 existing projects.

On the domestic front, export value for certain goods showed strong declines: steel was down 62%; computer, electronic parts and accessories, down 27.8%, textiles, down 20.4%; wood products, down 23.8%.

Only a few goods showed improvement in export value. Rice was up 6.5% and mobile devices and accessories went up three percent.

Source: VNA

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TEMPORARILY IMPORTED MEAT AND VISCERA PRODUCTS INTO VIETNAM TO BE STOPPED

VCN- After the price of pork dropped sharply at the beginning of 2017 to just 50% of the price in the same period last year, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has just issued Official Letter No. 3046 / BN- CN to the Prime Minister on a number of measures to stabilize livestock development.

temporarily imported meat and viscera products into vietnam to be stopped
There should be an adjustment of the quality of breeding stock and breeding methods for each market segment.

After a period of hot development in the livestock sector, especially pork and animal feed processing industry, there have been some shortcomings in the market, especially in the pork market. The price of pork has fallen down to 30,000 vnd per kg, especially in the coming summer months, causing serious losses to livestock farmers.

In order to stabilize and develop livestock in general and pig production in particular (the pig production occupies nearly 70% of the market share of livestock products as well as the structure of daily food consumption of the people), the Ministry of Industry and Rural Development has made some immediate and long-term solutions.

In particular, the immediate solution is to request the Prime Minister to assign the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to coordinate with the Ministry of Finance and localities to enhance the direction of enterprises in the application of technological measures in order to save costs, reduce production costs and prices of livestock products, especially feed and veterinary medicine to reach the lowest price in the region. Also, the authorities have accelerated negotiating measures to find markets for livestock products, especially pig production in both the border and cross-border areas.

At the same time, the Government has instructed banks and credit organizations to have solutions for debt relief for livestock and poultry breeders and businesses in livestock feed and veterinary medicine.

The Government has also required competent units which are capable of stockpiling and processing meat such as Vissan, Viet Duc, Hapro Hanoi, Saigon Co.op, Saigon Agriculture Corporation and military units to strengthen poultry stock for the upcoming summer months.

The Government has also considered stopping the temporary import for re-export of meat and viscera products from outside into the Vietnamese market in order to protect the market share of domestic animal products, thereby limiting the risk of diseases, the risk of “dirty food” in the domestic market, causing traffic infrastructure degradation due to large volume of nearly 3 million tons of goods in transit through Vietnam every year.

In the long run, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, localities should review and restrict the opening of new industrial animal feed processing units. Reportedly, the total capacity of registered factories has reached over 31 million tons, far exceeding the planned target of 2020 with 25 million tons.

The localities should reduce the size of pigs, especially the sow and adjustment of the quality of breeding stock and breeding methods for each market segment. In particular, increasing organic farming which is the strength of the farm sector and characteristic of Vietnamese livestock industry.

In addition, the localities should reorganize livestock production through chains, which maximizes the role of enterprises, associations, and cooperatives to better control quality, food safety, supply and demand for livestock products.

By Xuan Thao/ Hoang Anh

Source: http://customsnews.vn/

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CUSTOMS OFFICERS CLEARING CONTAINERS WITHOUT CHECKING AT TUGHLAKABAD (INDIA)

Corrupt Customs officials are allegedly clearing containers at the Inland Container Depot (ICD) at Tughlakabad (TKD), without scrutiny, thereby putting national security at high risk, according to experts on internal security. ICD comes under Ministry of Finance.

customs officers clearing containers without checking at tughlakabad india
CBI and DRI launched a month-long ‘investigation and examination’ of the containers on 1 March 2016.

Santosh Kumar Jain, a former officer of the Financial Investigation Unit (FIU) and an expert on internal security, said: “The Inland Container Depot (ICD) at Tughlakabad, a dry port, has turned into a den of corruption and shady Customs officials are allowing the clearance of containers without examination, thereby compromising national security. There are cases where Customs officials did not examine containers despite being prompted by the Electronic Data Interchange system for 100% examination of containers.”

“Just for earning a few extra bucks, some Customs officials are not only compromising national security, but their activities are leading to huge losses in revenue for the exchequer,” Jain, who has been in several committees formed to curb corruption in inland ports, said.

Evidence accessed by The Sunday Guardian shows that after sensing rampant corruption and illegal trade at the ICD-TKD port, premier investigative agencies in the country, including the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), launched a month-long “investigation and examination” drive on 1 March 2016, to check all suspicious containers, mostly originating from China, Dubai and Thailand, among other countries.

However, the agencies involved in the investigation have not made their findings public as to whether any unwarranted goods were found during the course of “investigation and examination”, but sources said that banned Indian currencies of higher denominations were found in several containers.

A spokesperson of Karol Bagh Traders Federation (KBTF), on the condition of anonymity, said: “Customs officials have joined hands with several importers involved in illegal trade. These officials have set up a parallel system at the ICD-TKD and have even appointed their own personnel who help them in collecting bribe money during office hours.”

Instead of stopping illegal trade practices, Customs officials are helping the touts, the KBTF spokesperson alleged, adding that these officers even harass importers-exporters not willing to pay bribes.

Despite action against some senior officials, the Customs Department has failed to bring an end to the prevailing corruption at the Inland Container Depot at Tughlakabad or introduce any mechanism to stop the illegal activities.

“In 2015, the CBI had arrested Atul Dixit, Commissioner of Customs at ICD-TKD and Nalin Kumar, Deputy Commissioner of Customs, ICD-TKD, for their alleged involvement in a case of fraudulent garments export and dubious transfer of drawback incentives,” the KBTF spokesperson added.

However, Nilank Kumar, Joint Commissioner of Customs, ICD-TKD, denied all allegations of rampant corruption at ICD-TKD.

“I am not aware of any corruption here in ICD-TKD. If any complaint comes, we will take action against those responsible,” he said.

Source: sundayguardianlive.com

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NO NEW CIRCULAR GUIDES THE LAW ON IMPORT AND EXPORT DUTY

VCN- Instead of drafting the Circular guiding some provisions of the Law on Import and Export Duty and Decree 134/2016 / ND-CP, these guidelines will now be provided in the draft Circular supplementing and amending Circular 38/2015 / TT-BTC which the General Department of Vietnam Customs is developing.

no new circular guides the law on import and export duty
Customs operations at the Thanh Thuy Customs Branch under the Ha Giang Customs Department. Photo: T. Trang.

That is the content which Mrs. Nguyen Kim Thoa – the Head of Tax Policy Division (the Import and Export Duty Department under the General Department of Vietnam Customs) exchanged with a reporter of the Customs Newspaper.

Reportedly, the contents related to import-export duty and tax administration will abolish Articles 40, 42, 46, 105, 108, 109, 110, 112 and 113 in Circular 38/2015 / TT-BTC.

Accordingly, in the draft Circular amending and supplementing Circular 38/2015 / TT-BTC will guide some regulations on import and export duty such as: payment of additional tax declaration; tax bases; the examination and processing of Customs valuation results; processing of Customs valuation results; guarantee and deposit tax money; location and form of tax payment; payment of Customs fees; taxes imposing on imported and exported goods; tax exemption for imported goods for processing, notification of the list of duty-free goods and tax refund cases.

By Thu Trang/ Hoang Anh

Source: http://customsnews.vn/

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SEAFOOD EXPORTS UP NEARLY 8% IN FIRST QUARTER

Aquatic product exports rose by 7.9% to US$1.51 billion in the first quarter of this year, according to latest statistics from the General Department of Vietnam Customs.

seafood exports up nearly 8 in first quarter

In the period, Japan surpassed the US to become the largest consumer of Vietnamese aquatic products with a revenue of US$252.9 million (up 29.5%), accounting for 16.7% of the country’s total seafood exports.

The US came second with a value of US$251.2 million (down 14.8% against the same period last year) and China ranked third with US$144.47 million (up 17.9%).

In general, seafood exports to global markets saw a decline compared to the same period last year, especially Kuwait (-48%), Romania (-39.5%), Iraq (-57.6%) and Turkey (-35.5%). However, exports to traditional markets still enjoyed a growth, even robust growth, namely Israel (+138.6%), Denmark (+107.2%), and Brazil (+75.1%).

The Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) has forecast that seafood exports is likely to increase by 5% to around US$7.5 billion this year. However, it is not an easy task for the seafood sector due to technical barriers to trade, unpredictable development of diseases and the shortage of raw materials for processing.

Meanwhile, the US still considers imposing anti-dumping duties on Vietnamese frozen fish fillets.

Source: VOV

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STATE BANK WORKS TO MAINTAIN STABLE INTEREST RATES

The State Bank of Vietnam SBV will work to maintain interest rate stability enabling firms to access credit for their production and business SBV Governor Le Minh Hung has said.

According to the central bank, outstanding loans for production and business activities made up about 80% of total in the banking system in the first quarter of 2017.

Currently, common lending rates for priority fields range from 6% to 7% per year for short term, and 9%-10% for medium and long terms.

For ordinary loans, the rates were 6.8%-9% for short term and 9.3%-11% for medium and long terms. For good clients, short-term loan interest rates are 4%-5% per annum.

state bank works to maintain stable interest rates

Chairman of the Vietnam Construction Pottery Association Dinh Quang Huy said the Government and banks have adopted a number of preferential credit policies to help enterprises develop.

As a result, many companies have stabilised operations, addressed capital shortages and avoided dependence on black credit, he said.

Numerous banks have supported businesses, following Government directions and the SBV request to save expenses and reduce interest rates.

For example, the Vietnam Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Industry and Trade (VietinBank) has applied preferential interest rates from now to November 30, 2017.

The interest rates for short-term business production were reduced from 8.2% to 7.4% per year for nine-month loans, and 7.7% instead of 8.5% for 12-month loans.

Meanwhile, the Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam (Vietcombank) currently maintains the lowest lending rate of 6.5% per annum for some sectors.

In the middle of February 2017, the currency market saw a number of commercial banks adjusting deposit rates, which fueled business concerns of rising interest rates.

However, the SBV Monetary Policy Department explained that the increases were insignificant a temporary measure from several small joint stock commercial banks.

Large State commercial banks will keep interest rates stable, the department said.

In a recent meeting between SBV Deputy Governor Nguyen Thi Hong and commercial banks, participants confirmed that there is no pressure on interest rates.

State banks like Vietcombank, VietinBank, BIDV, and Agribank have applied no interest rate adjustment since the end of 2016.

The US Federal Reserve’s move to further increase interest rates from now to 2018 could cause the US dollar to rise, exerting pressure on domestic inflation and the exchange rate.

To manage this, the SBV will devise measures to mitigate the impacts of domestic and international pressure on its monetary policies while striving to keep interest rates stable.

Source: VNA

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280 TRILLION VND FOR IMPORTING GOODS FROM CHINA

VCN- According to the latest information of the General Department of Vietnam Customs, by the end of the first quarter of 2017, the total value of imports from China reached nearly $US 12.7 billion, equivalent to about 280 trillion vnd, an increase of 19.5% compared to the same period in 2016.

280 trillion vnd for importing goods from china
280 trillion vnd for importing goods from China.

The uptrend

This is a very notable news, as imports from China appear to be slow in 2016 after years of strong gains. In 2016, Vietnam even spent $US 49.929 billion to import goods from China, but this figure only increased by $US 431 million compared to 2015.

However, in the first 3 months of 2017, imports from China have shown signs of recovery.

The latest statistics from the General Department of Vietnam Customs showed that in March 2017, Vietnam spent $US 5.072 billion importing goods from China. The turnover of imports this month from China was even much bigger than the total turnover of imports from Japan – the third largest market in our country in the first quarter of 2017 (in the first quarter of 2017, Vietnam only imported goods from Japan with a turnover of $US 3.709 billion).

Only in the first quarter of 2017, there were 5 commodity groups of imports from China with a turnover of $US 1 billion or more. The leading commodity group included machinery, equipment, tools and spare parts with a turnover of $US 2.526 billion, followed by telephone and accessories with a turnover of $US 1.609 billion; computers, electronic products and components with a turnover of $US 1.582 billion; fabrics with a turnover of $US 1.197 billion; and iron and steel with a turnover of $US 1.176 billion.

Notably, out of the 5 commodity groups of imports with a turnover of “billions of dollars” from China mentioned above, there were 4 commodity groups of imports from China maintaining the leading position in the Vietnamese market (except for imported computers and electronic products from Korea at No. 1).

In particular, imported telephone and accessories from China accounted for nearly 55% of the total import turnover of Vietnam; imported fabrics from China accounted for 51% of the total import turnover of Vietnam; imported iron and steel from China accounted for nearly 50% of the total import turnover of Vietnam; imported machinery, equipment, tools and spare parts accounted for 31.3% of the total import turnover of Vietnam.

With a total import turnover of nearly $US 12.7 billion in the first quarter of 2017, imports from China accounted for 27.3% of the total import turnover of Vietnam at the same time.

China takes advantage of opportunities

Regarding an increase in imports from China, on 17th April 2017, a reporter of the Customs Newspaper exchanged with Assoc. Prof. Pham Tat Thang – the senior researcher (the Ministry of Industry and Trade) who knows very clearly about foreign trade relations between Vietnam and China.

Assoc. Prof. Pham Tat Thang said that the problem of imports and trade deficit from China had existed for many years with controversial analysis. But in fact, import activities and trade deficit from China are still rising and there is no sign of stopping.

Regarding this issue, Assoc. Prof. Pham Tat Thang said that there were 2 main reasons.

The first reason is that China has taken advantage of opportunities from the ASEAN – China Free Trade Agreement (ACFTA) and the Vietnam-China Border Trade Agreement.

The second reason is that there has been an increase in imports from China with a large number of investment projects in Vietnam implemented by Chinese contractors. Through these projects, Chinese contractors imported a large amount of machinery, materials, and equipment from China to produce in Vietnam.

“Therefore, if there is no breakthrough in management solution, especially the management of investment projects, the control of import activities and the trade deficit from China will be very difficult”, Assoc. Prof. Pham Tat Thang said.

In addition to analyzing the causes of massive imports from China, which led to a large trade deficit, Mr. Pham Tat Thang also said that Vietnamese authorities should have solutions for these problems and further promote Vietnam’s exports to China.

Assoc. Prof. Pham Tat Thang stated: In fact, Vietnamese goods have not penetrated into the Chinese market and have not been able to access large distribution channels through the main roads. The export activities mainly occur through cross-border trade, which is regulated by China. For example, from early 2017 to date, China has restricted imports through Quang Ninh, Lang Son and changed to promote import-export through Lao Cai, Cao Bang and we have to depend on China. Therefore, this weakness should be solved soon.

By Thai Binh/ Hoang Anh

Source: http://customsnews.vn/

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THE MAIN EXPORT COMMODITIES IN Q1/2017

VNC – According to the General Department of Customs, export turnover of 10 largest commodities in the first quarter 2017 reached nearly $US 31.76 billion, accounting for 71.1% of the country’s total export turnover. In which, telephones and accessories were the largest commodities, yet decreased by 6.1% over the same period last year, while most of the top 10 commodities achieved positive growth.

the main export commodities in q12017

10 largest export commodities in the first quarter of 2017 compared with the same period of 2016

Telephones and accessories: Exports of telephones and accessories reached $US 3.09 billion in March 2016, an increase of 31% over the previous month, bringing the export value of this commodity to $US 7.77 billion in the first quarter 2017, down to 6.1% over the same period in 2016.

The main importers of Vietnamese telephones and accessories in the past three months include: the EU with $US 2.38 billion, down nearly 6.1% and occupying 30.6% of the country’s total export value in this commodity groups. Followed by the United Arab Emirates: nearly $US 901 million, down 19.9%; South Korea: $US 755 million, up 32.8%; United States: $US 620 million, down 43% … over the same period in 2016.

Textile and garment: Export value reached $US 2.1 billion, up sharply from 51.6% over the previous month, thereby raising the export value of this commodity group in the first three months 2017 to $US 5.62 billion, an increase of 10 % over the same period in 2016.

In the past three months, textile and garment exports turnover to the US market reached $US 2.72 billion, up 8.1%; to the EU reached $US 733 million, up 6.6%; to Japan reached $US 715 million, up 12.4% and to Korea: 617 $US million, up 17.1% over the same period in 2016.

Computers, electronic products, and components: Exports of computers, electronic products and components reached the highest level so far in March 2017 with a turnover of $US 2.19 billion, up 27, 5% over the previous month. As a result, the total export turnover of this group of three months increased to $US 5.52 billion, a 47.8% increase compared to the same period of 2016.

China remains the largest Vietnamese importer of this commodity group in the past three months with turnover reaching $US 1.37 billion, rising by 123.5%; followed by the EU: $US 1.04 billion, up 12.3%. Exports to these two markets accounted for 44% of country’s total exports of computers, electronic products, and components

Footwear: Exports of this group in this month reached over $US 1.09 billion, up 26.6% over the previous month. Hence, export turnover of this commodity group in the first quarter 2017 reached nearly $US 3.12 billion, up 11.9% over the previous month.

The import markets of footwears in Vietnam in the first quarter 2017 mainly include the US market with $US 1.07 billion, up 13.3% over the same period last year; EU market (28 countries) reached $US 988 million, up 9.9%; China market reached $US 240 million, up 28.5%;

Machinery, equipment, tools and other spare parts: Export turnover reached nearly US$ 1.13 billion in the month, up 24.3% over the previous month, bringing the export turnover to nearly $US2.91 billion in this quarter, up 37.5% over the same period last year.

The import markets of machinery, equipment and other spare parts of Vietnam in the first quarter 2017 mainly include the US market with $US 602 million, up 26.7%; Japan market reached $US 402 million, up 14.5%; China market is $US 370 million, up 85.6%;

Agricultural products (including vegetables, cashew nuts, coffee, tea, pepper, rice, cassava and cassava products): Agricultural exports reached $US 1.59 billion in March 2017, bringing the export turnover to $US 3.94 billion in this quarter, up 15.3% over the same period last year.

Import markets of Vietnam’s agricultural products in the first quarter of 2017 mainly include: China market with $US 1.47 billion, up 27.6% over the same period last year; EU market (28 countries) with $US 748 million, up 24.8%; US market with $US 457 million, up 23.5%; ASEAN market with $US 371 million, down 17.5%; Japan market with $US 92 million, up 17%; Korea market with $US 86 million, up 52%;

Exports of fruits and vegetables in this month reached $US 280 million, up 49.5% over the previous month, bringing the export turnover reached $US 701 million in the first quarter 2017, up 29.8% over the same period last year.

Cashew nut export in this month achieved strong growth in both volume and value, with 24 thousand tons worth $US 230 million, up 80.1% in volume and 88% in value over the previous month. Thereby, export turnover of this commodity group reached 56 thousand tons in the first quarter 2017, valued at $US 515 million, down 4.6% in volume, yet up 16.9% in value.

Coffee export reached 168 thousand tons in the month, worth $ 382 million; Increased 14.8% in volume and 15.1% in value, bringing the export turnover in 3 months 2017 reached 454 thousand tons, worth nearly $US 1.03 billion, down 4.3% in volume, yet 27.5% in value over the same period last year.

Rice export in this month reached 551 thousand tons, worth US$ 251 million, up 38.8% in volume and 47.2% in value over the previous month, thereby bringing the rice export turnover in first 3 months 2017 reached 1 29 million tons worth $US 565 million, down 17.5% in volume and 17.3% in value over the same period last year.

Rubber exports in this month were 66 thousand tons, worth $US 138 million, down 26.8% in volume and 27.9% in value, bringing the export turnover in the first quarter of this commodity group reached 250 thousand tons, worth $US 511 million, up 6.7% in volume, up 90.7% in value over the same period last year.

Seafood products: Vietnam’s seafood exports reached $US 603 million in March 2017, up 41.6% over the previous month, thereby bringing the total export turnover of these commodities to $US 1.51 billion in the first 3 months 2017, up 7.9% over the same period last year. By the end of March, Vietnam’s seafood exports grew in most main markets except the US. Specifically, exports to Japan: $US 253 million, up 29.3%; United States: $US 251 million, down 14.4%, to the European Union (EU): $US 249 million, up 2.3%; China: $US 144 million, up 20.9% and South Korea $US 141 million, up 26.4%…

Crude Oil: The volume of crude oil export was 470 thousand tons in this month, down 11.8%, worth $US 181 million, down 18.3% from the previous month. By the end of March 2017, the country’s crude oil exports reached 1.52 million tons, down 16.2% and $US 637 million, up 27.1% over the same period last year.

The crude oil of Vietnam is mainly exported to China: 704 thousand tons, down 39.8%; to Japan: 237 thousand tons, up 206.9%; to Singapore: 193 thousand tons (there is not any crude oil exported to this country by the same period in 2016)
Coal: Vietnam’s coal exports reached 194 thousand tons in March 2017, up 45.2% over the previous month, worth $US 30 million, up 31.8%. In the first three months of 2017, the amount of coal exported was 401 thousand tons, up 5.1 times and reached the value of nearly $US 65 million, up 12 times from the same period in 2016.

China continues to be the biggest coal consumer of Vietnam with over 5 million tons, up 4% and accounting for 80% of country’s total exports.

By HA NHI/LINH PHAN

Source: http://customsnews.vn/