Vietnam recorded a trade surplus of US$2.09 billion in the first month of 2021, which remained a stark contrast from a deficit of US$300 million in the same period last year, according to the General Department of Vietnam Customs (GDVC).

Production for exports at Garment 10 Company. Photo: Pham Hung.

In January, the country’s trade turnover stood at US$55 billion, representing an increase of 48.2% year-on-year, in which exports rose by 55.1% to US$28.55 billion and imports by 41.3% to US$7.74 billion.

According to the GDVC, foreign-invested sector posted a trade surplus of US$3.98 billion during the period, coming on the back of a 70% surge in exports year-on-year to US$21.57 billion, or over 75% of the country’s total export turnover.

Phones and parts posted the largest export turnover among export items during January with US$6.1 billion, up US$3.4 billion against the same period of last year.

In addition, electronic products, computers and components earned an estimated US$3.89 billion, up 46.2% year-on-year; garments (US$2.66 billion); equipment and parts (US$3.26 billion).

The US, China, EU, South Korea and ASEAN are the five largest buyers of Vietnamese goods in January.

Vietnam, meanwhile, mainly imported goods from China worth US$9.16 billion, up 64.1% year-on-year and accounting for 34.6% of the country’s total imports. South Korean came in the second place (US$4.75 billion), followed by ASEAN (US$3.18 billion) and Japan (US$1.68 billion).