Agro-forestry products see strongest growth among export items

According to a recently published report from the General Statistics Office, Vietnam's total export and import turnover reached 511.11 billion USD during the first eight months of 2024, marking an increase of 16.7% compared to the corresponding period in 2023. Accordingly, export revenue increased by 15.8% and import revenue increased by 17.7%. Additionally, Vietnam's balance of trade recorded a surplus of 19.07 billion USD.

Regarding exports, Vietnam reported 30 commodities reaching over 1 billion USD in export turnover over the eight-month period, representing 92.3% of the total export turnover. Among these items, six reported an export turnover of 10 billion USD, accounting for 62.6% of the total export turnover.

Notably, Vietnam's export turnover reached 37.5 billion USD in August 2024, which is an increase of 14.5% compared to the corresponding period in 2023. Statistics also indicated that this figure was the highest monthly export turnover since the beginning of the year.

In terms of export structure, fuel and mineral exports reported a turnover of 2.92 billion USD, accounting for 1.1% of the total; processed industrial exports reported a turnover of 233.33 billion USD, accounting for 88%; agro-forestry exports reported a turnover of 22.53 billion USD, accounting for 8.5%; and seafood exports reported a turnover of 6.31 billion USD, accounting for 2.4%.

Notably, agro-forestry products represented the strongest growth among major export sectors with a total value of 22.53 billion USD, reflecting an increase of 24.9% compared to the corresponding period in 2023.

On the other hand, Vietnam's total import turnover reached 246.02 billion USD following the first eight months of 2024, marking an increase of 17.7% compared to the corresponding period in 2023.

During this timeframe, Vietnam reported 38 commodities reaching over 1 billion USD in import turnover, representing 90.8% of the total import turnover. Among these items, two reported an import turnover of 10 billion USD, accounting for 40.7% of the total import turnover.

Consequently, Vietnam posted a trade surplus of 19.07 billion USD during the first eight months of 2024 (compared to a surplus of 19.9 billion USD during the same period in 2023). Accordingly, the domestic economic sector saw a trade deficit of 15.7 billion USD, whereas the foreign-invested sector (including crude oil) achieved a surplus of 34.77 billion USD.

In terms of import structure, production materials topped the list with a turnover of 230.95 billion USD, representing 93.9% of the total. Within this group, machinery, equipment, tools, and accessories accounted for 46.9%; raw materials and fuel accounted for 47%. In addition, consumer goods imports reached 15.07 billion USD in turnover, accounting for 6.1%.

Significant trade deficit with China

The United States maintained its position as Vietnam's most significant export market, with a total estimated turnover of 77.9 billion USD. Reportedly, Vietnam's trade surplus with the U.S. reached nearly 68.1 billion USD, which is an increase of 28.6% compared to the corresponding period in 2023.

Conversely, China remained as Vietnam's largest import market, with a total estimated turnover of 92.3 billion USD. Vietnam's trade deficit with China climbed to 54.4 billion USD, which is an increase of 69.6% compared to the corresponding period in 2023.

In other key markets, Vietnam's trade surplus with the EU reached approximately 23.6 billion USD, an increase of 22%, and its trade surplus with Japan reached 1.7 billion USD, an increase of 30.5%. Conversely, Vietnam's trade deficit with South Korea reached 20 billion USD, an increase of 12.1%, and its trade deficit with ASEAN reached 5.8 billion USD, an increase of 14.8%.

According to a report from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Vietnam recorded a trade surplus of 11.8 billion USD for the agro-forestry-fishery product group in the first eight months of 2024, which is an increase of 68% compared to the corresponding period in 2023. During this timeframe, agro-forestry-fishery exports reached 40.08 billion USD, while imports stood at 28.28 billion USD.

Several key commodities saw an increase in export turnover compared to their corresponding levels in 2023. Accordingly, wood and wood products reported an export turnover of 10.24 billion USD, an increase of 20.6%; fruits and vegetables reported a turnover of 4.63 billion USD, an increase of 30.6%. Coffee exports also reported a turnover of 4.03 billion USD, which is an increase of 36.1% in value, despite a 11.9% drop in volume.

The United States, China, and Japan have maintained their positions as the top three export markets for Vietnamese agricultural products. The U.S. accounted for 21.4% of the total, an increase of 23.5% compared to the corresponding period in 2023; China accounted for 20.4%, an increaes of 10.2%; and Japan accounted for 6.7%, an increaes of 4.6%.