Data from the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) shows that in 2020, Vietnam was one of the few economies with positive export growth with a turnover of US$281.47 billion, up 6.5 percent compared to 2019. The trade balance of goods in 2020 saw a record trade surplus of $19.1 billion. The country has maintained a trade surplus for five consecutive years, contributing to macroeconomic stability and economic growth and creating more jobs. With a trade surplus of $10.4 billion in the field of agriculture, forestry, and fishery, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Ha Cong Tuan said that the export turnover of the whole industry was higher than forecast, reaching $41.2 billion, up 2.5 percent, exceeding the record high in 2019.
According to Mr. Tran Tuan Anh, Minister of the MoIT, to achieve such results, besides the wise direction of the Government and the Prime Minister with the motto of focusing on both controlling well the pandemic and solving difficulties to promote production and business, it has to mention the efforts to overcome difficulties of the Vietnamese business community. Typically, amid the situation that the US-China trade war escalated, and many supply chains were broken, and import and export markets faced difficulties due to the pandemic, Vietnam has cleverly exploited both markets. Therefore, Vietnam's exports to these markets recorded high growth rates, with exports to the US market reaching nearly $76.5 billion, up 24.7 percent, and exports to China touching $48.8 billion, up 17.7 percent.
From August 2020 to now, although the pandemic in other countries was very complicated, after the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) is implemented, Vietnam's exports to the EU market accelerated robustly, with an export turnover of $34.9 billion for the whole year. From August to now alone, exports to the EU market reached about $15.38 billion. Many export products of Vietnam had seen positive changes, including rice, shrimp, and other aquatic products. From December 31, 2020, the FTA between Vietnam and the UK and North Ireland (UKVFTA) also becomes effective. Many experts predict that this agreement will open up many great opportunities for Vietnamese enterprises in 2021.
According to Minister Tran Tuan Anh, Vietnam had taken advantage of the global trend of trade and investment shift to focus on developing the supporting industries, helping enterprises to improve production and business capacity and have the opportunity to join the global production chain. As a result, many domestic enterprises have successfully participated in the global value chain. ‘Many large multinational manufacturers have been planning to expand investment or make new investments in Vietnam, namely Toyota, Ford, Honda, Hyundai, Mazda, Mitsubishi, Foxconn, and Samsung,’ he informed.
In the context of many complicated developments in the region and the world, the new strain of Covid-19, and the spreading Covid-19 pandemic in many countries, Minister Tran Tuan Anh asked ministries, industries, and localities to focus on resolving mechanisms and policies, creating favorable conditions for enterprises.
Vietnam has had the experience of implementing signed FTAs, especially new-generation FTAs, such as the CPTPP and EVFTA. The Government has had action programs to carry out the FTAs, so ministries, industries, and localities should consider this as a key task to continue trade promotion for Vietnamese export products to dominate better in international markets in the coming time, Minister Tran Tuan Anh suggested.
According to Mr. Tran Tuan Anh, Minister of the MoIT, to achieve such results, besides the wise direction of the Government and the Prime Minister with the motto of focusing on both controlling well the pandemic and solving difficulties to promote production and business, it has to mention the efforts to overcome difficulties of the Vietnamese business community. Typically, amid the situation that the US-China trade war escalated, and many supply chains were broken, and import and export markets faced difficulties due to the pandemic, Vietnam has cleverly exploited both markets. Therefore, Vietnam's exports to these markets recorded high growth rates, with exports to the US market reaching nearly $76.5 billion, up 24.7 percent, and exports to China touching $48.8 billion, up 17.7 percent.
From August 2020 to now, although the pandemic in other countries was very complicated, after the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) is implemented, Vietnam's exports to the EU market accelerated robustly, with an export turnover of $34.9 billion for the whole year. From August to now alone, exports to the EU market reached about $15.38 billion. Many export products of Vietnam had seen positive changes, including rice, shrimp, and other aquatic products. From December 31, 2020, the FTA between Vietnam and the UK and North Ireland (UKVFTA) also becomes effective. Many experts predict that this agreement will open up many great opportunities for Vietnamese enterprises in 2021.
According to Minister Tran Tuan Anh, Vietnam had taken advantage of the global trend of trade and investment shift to focus on developing the supporting industries, helping enterprises to improve production and business capacity and have the opportunity to join the global production chain. As a result, many domestic enterprises have successfully participated in the global value chain. ‘Many large multinational manufacturers have been planning to expand investment or make new investments in Vietnam, namely Toyota, Ford, Honda, Hyundai, Mazda, Mitsubishi, Foxconn, and Samsung,’ he informed.
In the context of many complicated developments in the region and the world, the new strain of Covid-19, and the spreading Covid-19 pandemic in many countries, Minister Tran Tuan Anh asked ministries, industries, and localities to focus on resolving mechanisms and policies, creating favorable conditions for enterprises.
Vietnam has had the experience of implementing signed FTAs, especially new-generation FTAs, such as the CPTPP and EVFTA. The Government has had action programs to carry out the FTAs, so ministries, industries, and localities should consider this as a key task to continue trade promotion for Vietnamese export products to dominate better in international markets in the coming time, Minister Tran Tuan Anh suggested.
