In May 2024, Vietnam’s trade in goods returned to a deficit, of which 88.8% were key raw materials for service production and operation. Experts believe that this is a positive signal that production and operation are gradually recovering, and they are full of expectations for industrial growth and import and export of goods in the second half of 2024.

According to statistics from the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association, in May 2024 and the first five months of this year, Vietnam’s textile and clothing import and export activities released positive signals, and many companies’ orders continued until the end of the third quarter, or even until the end of 2024.

It is worth mentioning that in May 2024, the import value of cotton, cloth, yarn and various textile and clothing raw materials of various companies increased by 14.32% month-on-month. In the first five months of 2024, the cumulative import value of cotton, cloth, yarn and various textile and clothing raw materials increased by 15.34% month-on-month. Against the background of the recovery of production and operation, the increase in raw material imports has driven the export value of the entire textile and clothing industry to grow again. Data from the Ministry of Industry and Trade show that in the first five months, the export value of textiles and clothing increased by 6.3% compared with the same period in 2023.

In addition to the textile and garment industry, some categories of raw materials used in production have also shown quite good growth signs in the past five months. The Ministry of Industry and Trade said that machinery, equipment, spare parts and raw materials serving domestic production accounted for 88.8% of the total imports of goods. The cumulative import value of goods that need to be imported in the first five months of this year is expected to be US$132.16 billion, an increase of 19.8% over the same period in 2023. Among them, the import value of computers, electronic products and spare parts is expected to reach US$40.25 billion, an increase of 27.3% year-on-year, accounting for 27% of the total national imports; the import value of machinery and equipment and parts reached US$18.5 billion, an increase of 15.4%, etc.

In terms of imports, Vietnam’s imports of goods are expected to reach US$33.81 billion in May 2024, a month-on-month increase of 12.8%. In terms of exports, the export value of goods in May 2024 was approximately US$32.81 billion, a month-on-month increase of 5.7%. It can be seen that Vietnam’s trade deficit in May 2024 was approximately US$1 billion. This also means that May 2024 is the first month in which Vietnam has a trade deficit after achieving a trade surplus every month for nearly two years. In the first five months of 2024, the import value of goods reached approximately US$148.76 billion, an increase of 18.2% year-on-year, of which the import value of domestic enterprises reached US$54.95 billion, an increase of 24.2%; the import value of foreign-funded enterprises was US$93.81 billion, an increase of 14.9%.

Ruan Jinzhuang, deputy director of the Import and Export Bureau of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, believes that Vietnam’s import and export activities showed a good growth momentum in May 2024 and the first five months of this year, reflecting the continued recovery of production and operation and import and export activities.

Ruan Jinzhuang also said that in the first five months, the import value of goods and raw materials of the domestic economic sector reached US$54.95 billion, an increase of 24.2%, and the import value of foreign-funded enterprises reached US$93.81 billion, an increase of 14.9% year-on-year. This proves that the “health” of enterprises has improved significantly in 2024.