Vietnam strives to attain eight percent export growth this year
Vietnam strives to attain eight percent export growth this year
Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Quoc Khanh spoke to the media about Vietnam’s export-import activities in 2022.
Vietnam's exports reached about US$156.5 billion in the first five months of 2022 |
How do you view Vietnam’s export-import activities so far this year?
Despite numerous difficulties and challenges, export-import activities have yielded positive results, making an important contribution to macroeconomic stability and socioeconomic development.
The government’s decision to switch from Zero COVID-19 to safe and flexible adaptation to the pandemic is worthy of recognition as exports have increased rapidly since it came into effect.
Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Quoc Khanh |
In the first five months of 2022, total export-import turnover reached an estimated US$311 billion. Of the total, exports reached about US$156.5 billion, an increase of 29.8 percent compared to a year ago. Meanwhile, imports surged by 22.6 percent year-on-year to around US$155 billion. As a result, Vietnam’s trade surplus hit US$1.53 billion during the reviewed period, contributing to macroeconomic stability, increasing foreign reserves and stabilizing exchange rates.
Exports are always a very important variable in gross domestic product (GDP). Vietnam’s GDP grew more than five percent in the first quarter of the year and is expected to expand by 5.6 percent in the second quarter.
What are the opportunities and challenges for export-import activities?
Free trade agreements to which Vietnam is a signatory are offering opportunities for export growth and Vietnamese businesses have made good use of these trade deals. In recent times, Vietnam’s exports to members of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) have increased strongly. However, we still maintain a relatively cautious attitude in our export forecast for the whole year as the situation is potentially risky.
The first risk is high global inflation. High inflation has forced many countries to gradually reduce the size of economic stimulus packages, while increasing interest rates to curb inflation. It results in a reduction in consumer demand, which affects Vietnam’s exports.
Supply chain disruptions and growing shortages of raw materials are the second major risk, stemming from the Russia-Ukraine war and China’s Zero-COVID policy. Due to these great risks, we have maintained our export target for 2022. The whole industry is making efforts to complete the eight-percent export growth target set out by the National Assembly.
Businesses are pinning high hopes on government support. What is your view?
The National Assembly and the government have adopted a very correct policy. When the economy recovers from the pandemic, there should be a stimulating move, such as an increase in state expenditures to stimulate the economy. As the economy develops, it will bring incomes to all sectors. A stimulating move plays an important role, so that businesses pin high hopes on the government’s economic stimulus package.
As the government approved it, the most important thing now is that the country needs to disburse that money at the right time, in the right place and in an effective manner.
