HANOI- Vietnam’s trade surplus with the United States widened to $94.9 billion last year, the highest level on record, led by shipments of items such as garments, shoes, smartphones, electronics and wooden furniture, customs data showed.
The Southeast Asian country has benefited from around 15 free trade agreements helping boost its export-driven economy, which grew 8 percent last year. Total exports in 2022 rose 10.6 percent to $371.85 billion.
However, economists warn Vietnam is facing headwinds, with weakening global demand already starting to impact its shipments in December, when exports fell 14 percent from a year earlier.
Meanwhile, a trade deficit with China, which is the largest supplier of materials and equipment to Vietnam’s labor-intensive manufacturing sector, widened to a record $60.2 billion in 2022 from $54.0 billion a year earlier, according to Vietnam’s customs data released on Monday.
Vietnam’s imports from China last year rose 6.6 percent to $117.87 billion, led by products such as machinery, electronics, fabrics, smartphones and components, the data showed.
Exports to the United States – Vietnam’s largest export market – rose 13.6 percent to $109.39 billion last year, with the trade surplus climbing from $81.0 billion in 2021.
Vietnam’s economy grew 8.02 percent in 2022, the fastest annual pace since 1997, backed by strong domestic retail sales and exports, but is facing headwinds from a global slowdown.
The reading is higher than an official growth target of 6.0 percent-6.5 percent and last year’s growth of just 2.58 percent, when COVID-19 lockdowns left a dent on the economy and impacted factory activity.
The high annual growth number comes despite fears of a global recession and its impact on demand for exports from Vietnam, a key manufacturer of goods like textiles, footwear and electronics for big-name international brands.
“The economic performance is worth noting amid global economic and political uncertainty and challenges,” the General Statistics Office (GSO) said in a report.
The industrial and construction sector in 2022 grew 7.78 percent, while the services sector expanded 9.99 percent, and the agricultural sector grew 3.36 percent, it said.
Exports in 2022 were up 10.6 percent to $371.85 billion, while retail sales rose 19.8 percent, the GSO said, while consumer prices in December rose 4.55 percent from a year earlier.
