Vietnam’s export turnover has increased 21.2 per cent year-on-year. Commitments for international integration have been implemented, helping reduce import-export taxes. Favorable business environment had aided export activities. Total import-export turnover in the first seven months of this year rose 12.7 per cent from the same period last year. Exports continued to maintain a high growth of 15.3 per cent in the period, meeting 56.5 per cent of the year’s targets.

The country’s garment export turnover makes up four per cent of the world’s total turnover. However, the sector has mainly performed cutting and sewing in the global garment and textile supply chain. Vietnamese garment and textile firms have participated in simple outsourcing and lack the ability to provide packaging, resulting in low added value.

The garment and textile industry has also relied on imported materials. It has to import up to 86 per cent of cloth for production and exports. Vietnam’s exports depended on foreign directed investment enterprises, which account for 70 per cent of total turnover. This is because Vietnam does not have an export value chain. Most Vietnamese firms are small-scale and can’t afford to invest in material areas and modern processing and packaging equipment.