A customer fulfills payment obligations to the State at a desk assigned to collect money for the State budget at a branch of the Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam (Vietcombank). — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — The State budget's revenues from export-import activities hit over VNĐ152.94 trillion (US$6.5 billion) in the first five months of this year, making up 36 per cent of the estimate, down 18 per cent year on year, the General Department of Vietnam Customs (GDVC) has reported.

During the period, the country's total export-import value was estimated at $262.54 billion, down 14.7 per cent year-on-year. Of which, the export turnover reached $136.17 billion while the import value was $126.37 billion, down 11.6 per cent and 17.9 per cent, respectively.

In May, the customs sector only collected more than VNĐ30 trillion, marking a month-on-month decrease of 6.23 per cent.

The GDVC’s Export-Import Tax Department attributed the decrease to the fall in the taxable import value of certain items, such as completely built-up automobile, iron and steel, mobile phones and components.

For the first time, Việt Nam had witnessed a higher number of temporary and permanent business withdrawals from the market than the number of enterprises joining or re-entering the market. The global supply chain continued to face the risk of disruption and fragmentation, leading to various consequences for export-import activities and economic growth.

Major economies that are importers of Vietnamese goods, such as the US and the European Union (EU), reduced their purchasing targets for conventional and luxury products, resulting in a decrease in orders, particularly in sectors such as apparel, footwear, furniture manufacturing, metal production.

This year, the GDVC was assigned by the National Assembly to collect VNĐ425 trillion (over $18 billion) for the State budget, providing that the country's GDP growth will hit 6-6.5 per cent, crude oil price reaches $70 per barrel, and export and import turnover rises by 8-9 per cent and 7-8 per cent, respectively.

Domestic revenue on the downtrend

State budget collection in the January-May period was estimated at over VNĐ769.6 trillion ($32.75 billion), equivalent to 47.5 per cent of the estimates for the whole year, the Ministry of Finance reported.

According to the ministry, although the domestic revenue in the reviewed period was quite good compared to the estimates, the monthly figure tended to decrease as the January collection reached 14.7 per cent of the estimate, February 7.7 per cent, March 8.9 per cent, April 9.9 per cent, and May 6.4 per cent. The domestic collection in the first five months was equal to 97.1 per cent of that recorded in the same period last year.

The ministry said 17 out of the 63 provinces and centrally-run cities recorded State budget revenue topping 48 per cent of this year’s targets.

Thirteen localities saw the collection higher than that in the same period of 2022, and 50 others were lower.

Meanwhile, VNĐ653.1 trillion from the State budget was spent in the period, representing 31.5 per cent of this year’s plan, and rising by 10.9 per cent year-on-year, statistics show.

The finance ministry said expenditures in the January – May period were performed as planned, meeting demand for socio-economic development, defence and security, state management, debt repayment, and implementation of social security tasks. — VNS