Cargo containers are loaded at Mỹ Thới Port in the southern province of An Giang. — VNA/VNS Photo Công Mạo

HÀ NỘI - Viet Nam's export value saw a year-on-year increase of nearly 5 per cent to an estimated US$82.94 billion in the first four months of this year despite the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO).

Domestic companies generated $26.45 billion from exports during the period, rising 12 per cent year-on-year and making up 32 per cent of the country's total export earnings. Meanwhile, exports of foreign-invested firms hit $56.49 billion, up 1.5 per cent and making up 68 per cent of the total.

Fifteen groups of products recorded an export value of over $1 billion or equivalent to 80 per cent of the nation’s four-month total earnings. Of them, phones and parts earned the largest export turnover with $16.2 billion, up 1.1 per cent year-on-year and accounting for 19.5 per cent of the total exports. Electronics, computers and components came next with $12.4 billion, up 29 per cent year-on-year, followed by textile and garments ($8.9 billion, down 6 per cent); equipment and parts ($6.9 billion, up 30 per cent); and footwear ($5.5 billion, up 1.3 per cent).

Other staples with high export value included wood and wooden products ($3.4 billion, up 10 per cent); transportation vehicles ($2.7 billion, down 4 per cent); seafood ($2.2 billion, down 8.5 per cent); plastic-made goods ($1.1 billion, up 1.3 per cent) and products made of steel and iron ($1.03 billion, up 2 per cent).

From January to April, the US remained Việt Nam's biggest export market, spending $20.3 billion on Vietnamese goods, a yearly hike of 13.4 per cent. It was followed by China with $13.1 billion, up 27 per cent; the EU with $10.7 billion, down 8.1 per cent and ASEAN nations with $8.2 billion, down 3.4 per cent, the GSO said in a monthly report.

Per the report, the country's imports expanded 2.1 per cent year-on-year to an estimated $79.89 billion in the period. Domestic firms spent $33.6 billion on imports, up 1 per cent year-on-year while foreign-invested companies saw a yearly turnover rise of 3 per cent to $46.31 billion.

Electronics, computers and components accounted for 22 per cent of the nation’s four-month imports at $17.8 billion, up 13 per cent over the same period last year. Among others were machinery, equipment and parts at $11.5 billion, down 0.1 per cent; telephones and parts ($4.3 billion, up 12 per cent); cloth ($3.6 billion, down 11 per cent); steel and iron ($2.9 billion, down 6.5 per cent); automotive ($1.9 billion, down 23 per cent) and crude oil ($1.8 billion, up 35 per cent).

China was Việt Nam's largest supplier, selling $22.7 billion worth of goods to Việt Nam, down 0.1 per cent year-on-year. South Korea ranked second by shipping $15.5 billion worth of goods to Việt Nam, up 3 per cent year-on-year, followed by ASEAN countries with $9.9 billion, down 8 per cent. 

According to the GSO's report, Việt Nam’s trade surplus narrowed to $3 billion in January-April from the $3.74 billion recorded a month ago. — VNS