Vietnam's hopes of export-led growth take fresh knock
HANOI - Vietnam's exports for the first nine months rose just 10.5 percent year on year, well below even the revised target
of 14 percent set by the government for 2001 just two weeks ago, official figures showed Thursday.
A collapse in world prices for Vietnam's key agricultural commodity exports was the main factor in the lower
than expected export total of 11.656 billion dollars, the preliminary figures from the General Department of
Statistics showed.
Coffee exports by the world's number two supplier rose 40.6 percent by volume but fell 18.7 percent by value.
Rice and pepper exports showed the same story, growing 16.5 and 51.4 percent by volume but falling 1.3 and
29.6 percent by value. Handicraft exports were also down by 8.7 percent year on year.
Increases in other exports failed to keep Vietnam on track for export growth originally projected at 16 percent
before Trade Minister Vu Khoan reduced the target earlier this month in the face of a worsening global
slowdown.
Fruit and vegetable exports were up 62.8 percent, seafood up 32.3 percent, coal 27.4 percent, clothing and textiles
8.8 percent, crude oil six percent and footwear 2.21 percent, the figures showed.
An import bill of 11.778 billion dollars for the first nine months, up just 5.2 percent year on year, kept Vietnam on
target to trim its trade deficit.
The trade gap of 122 million dollars for the year to September was sharply down on the 513 million dollars
registered in the same period of 2000.
Fertiliser imports were down 28.8 percent and computers and electronic goods 21.7 percent, although auto
imports rose a whopping 93.9 percent, steel 49.4 percent, cotton 41.7 percent and other chemicals 15.4 percent.
Vietnam's trade deficit ballooned to 892 million dollars in 2000 from 113 million dollars the previous year largely
due to a larger than expected increase in imports.
Communist authorities have been counting on a major boost in exports to the United States to help them achieve
an ambitious annual growth target of 7.5 percent for the next decade.
However a landmark trade agreement between the former foes, which would lift the punitive tariffs currently
imposed on Vietnamese exports, is still awaiting approval by the US Senate more than 14 months after it was
signed.
Agence France Presse - September 27, 2001.
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