Resilience apparent as trade turnover keeps momentum

Vietnam's trade momentum remained robust in the first quarter of this year, as total import-export turnover climbed to $249.5 billion, up 23 per cent on-year, highlighting the economy's resilience in the face of mounting external challenges.

- By Nguyen Thu

Vietnam's external trade continued to expand strongly in the first quarter of 2026. According to data released by the National Statistics Office (NSO) on April 4, exports reached $122.93 billion, up 19.1 per cent on-year, while imports rose 27 per cent to $126.57 billion.

The broad-based acceleration in both exports and imports reflects a firm recovery in production activity and external demand. However, the trade balance shifted to a deficit of $3.64 billion in Q1, reversing from a surplus of $3.57 billion in the same period last year, as import growth outpaced export expansion.

A total of 20 export items recorded turnover exceeding $1 billion, accounting for 86.8 per cent of total exports, including five items surpassing $5 billion and representing 62.4 per cent.

The processing and manufacturing sector remained the key growth driver, generating $110.52 billion, or nearly 90 per cent of total export turnover.