According to Bui Van Phan, deputy head of the Management Board of Tan Thanh Border Gate Economic Zone, up to 400 fruit-carrying trucks have arrived at the border gate each day recently; while officers are only able to provide customs clearance service for around 200 trucks a day.
As goods flood the border gate ahead of the lunar New Year, it is expected that Chinese traders will take advantage of the situation to offer lower prices to Vietnamese exporters and become more selective than usual.
With the goods thus selling more slowly in China, Vietnamese traders are staying longer around border areas, worsening traffic clogs.
Chinese food safety watchdogs, meanwhile, have stepped up inspections of Vietnamese produce in the lead-up to the lunar New Year, further slowing down customs clearance.
Local customs officers have guided some trucks to the nearby Cong Trang border gate to ease traffic congestion. However, as infrastructure around the border gate is poor, customs clearance has remained slow.
Nguyen Vuong, head of the Tan Thanh Customs Department, said customs officers are working to help firms sell their goods in China as quickly as possible.
They have also asked Vietnamese firms to stop exporting goods for the next three days to avoid losses, said Vuong.
