Suits are made for export at the Garment 10 Joint Stock Co in the capital city. Textile and garments are among six staples recording a high export value in 2019. VNA/VNS Photo Trần Việt

HÀ NỘI — The country’s trade surplus reached a record high of US$9.9 billion in 2019, the highest level seen in the past four years.

For the first time, the nation’s trade turnover surpassed the $500-billion mark this year, witnessing the strongest growth of the Vietnamese-invested sector compared to foreign invested sector.

At a ceremony on Monday, Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc highlighted the efforts made by ministries, localities and the business community, especially in the context that global trade this year had witnessed a 10-year low of just 1.2 per cent amidst trade conflicts.

Over the past eight years Việt Nam's import-export value had soared 2.5 times, reaching $517 billion in 2019.

In 2019, 32 products witnessed turnover of more than $1 billion, and six sectors reached a turnover of over $10 billion, accounting for nearly 93 per cent of the total.

Việt Nam had tackled import-export related difficulties to boost the country’s trade, the Prime Minister emphasised, noting solutions to promote the ASEAN Single Window platform, electronic customs clearance and credit guarantees for exports.

The data showed that Việt Nam’s import-export value had increased 170 times compared to the time it embarked on the renewal process (1986), 37 times over the value when it joined ASEAN (1995) and five times over the year it was admitted to the World Trade Organisation (2007).

PM Phúc said policies on imports and exports had led to positive results. Việt Nam had negotiated and signed 14 free trade agreements (FTAs), of which the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) Agreement was the most significant.

The total value of imports and exports from 2000-19 reached nearly $4 trillion, of which, only in the last five years, Việt Nam's trade turnover surpassed $2.1 trillion.

The country has jumped on the global trade map, from 50th in exports and 44th in imports in 2006 to 26th in exports and 23rd in imports in 2018. This had helped Việt Nam maintain its position in the 30 biggest importers and exporters in the world and rank third in ASEAN, after Singapore and Thailand, PM Phúc said.

$300 billion export value target for 2020

Setting a goal of $300 billion in export turnover for 2020, the Prime Minister asked ministries and localities to work closely to attain the fifth-year trade surplus for the country.

He said Vietnamese businesses should work with foreign invested enterprises for mutual benefits, while continuing to defend and protect Vietnamese goods, protect key products and avoid litigation from foreign trade.

The Prime Minister also suggested fighting trade fraud, smuggling and handling violations of intellectual property rights, creating a fair, open and transparent business environment and reducing import and export costs of commodities. — VNS