This also marks the third time that the export of timber and wood products has exceeded the threshold of USD1.5 billion per month.
The export value of timber and wood products to the majority of major markets increased in January, of which the United States took the lead with USD928.2 million, up 12.8% on-year. This was followed by Japan with USD153 million and China with USD134.4 million.
With an export turnover of over USD1.5 billion, timber and wood products are among seven groups of export commodities which saw a turnover of more than USD1 billion in January.
These products are also among the top three commodity groups that have witnessed double-digit growth, behind only garments and textiles.
According to experts, there are also a number of advantages for the wood industry to make breakthroughs in the year ahead thanks to the gradual recovery of the global economy after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Other factors will create a driving force which will ultimately accelerate the export of timber and wood products, including greater investment in technology, the diversification of export markets, and utilisation of free trade agreements.
Positive signals from the market indicate that the wood industry will continue to see strong growth, surpassing the set target to reach USD20 billion this year.
Quang Tri: Over 25,000 ha of land cleared from war-left UXOs
The central province of Quang Tri has so far cleared over 25,000 ha of land from war-left landmines and other unexploded ordnance (UXO) and safely handled 765,000 UXO items, reported Vietnam News Agency.
The central province of Quang Tri has so far cleared over 25,000 ha of land from war-left landmines and other unexploded ordnance (UXO) (Photo: VNA)
The local authorities have also worked hard to support thousands of landmine victims, and raise awareness of local students and residents of the dangers of mines and UXOs.
Besides funding from the budget, the locality has mobilised over 110 million USD from donors for the settlement of wartime UXO consequences.
The mobilization of aid has helped Quang Tri train technicians, and equip them with modern equipment and devices in mine clearance.
Quang Tri is the most polluted locality in terms of UXOs in Vietnam, with over 82 percent of its land area contaminated. War-left landmines and bombs have killed over 3,430 people and injured 5,100 since the war ended in 1975.
Since 1995, the local authorities have cooperated with international organisations to carry out demining activities.
According to Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Hoang Nam, Quang Tri is striving to become the first locality in Vietnam to be safe from UXOs left over by the war in 2025.
The locality aims to clean up about 3,000 ha of contaminated land and mobilise 10 million USD each year from foreign non-governmental organisations for the task. It will strive to complete the zoning of land areas contaminated with cluster bombs and announce dangerous areas to the public, and build policies on human resource development serving bomb and mine clearance in the 2021-2025 period.
Each year, up to 60,000 people can access education programmes on bombs and mines, and 1,300-1,500 victims and their families are expected to receive support in healthcare and livelihood development.
By 2025, all local schools will include bomb and mine education in their curricular.
Vietnam-India trade exceeds 13 billion USD
Two-way trade between Vietnam and India in 2021 surpassed 13 billion USD for the first time, up 36.5 percent compared to the previous year, reported Vietnam News Agency.
Illustrative image (Photo: VNA)
The Vietnam Trade Office in India cited data from the General Department of Vietnam Customs, saying that Vietnam exported 6.25 billion USD worth of goods in the year, up 20 percent year-on-year; while India’s figure 6.95 billion USD, up 56 percent.
Vietnam’s main exports to India in December last year were metals (79.3 million USD); computers, electronic products and components (78.8 million USD), phones and components (76.7 million USD), other goods (75.2 million USD), machinery, equipment, tools and spare parts (49.8 million USD). Those that recorded strong growth included pepper (up 101 percent), coffee (up 90 percent), and rubber products (up 88 percent).
Plastic raw materials, chemicals, rubber, and coal were were Vietnamese items that witnessed the strongest growth in 2021, surging 231 percent, 162 percent and 138 percent, respectively.
Meanwhile, mobile phones and components continued to record the largest export turnover, hitting more than 1.28 billion USD, accounting for about 21 percent of Vietnam’s total export value to India, the department said.
In December last year, India mainly exported steel, metals, cotton, and machinery and equipment to Vietnam, with respective turnover of 116 million USD, 37 million USD, 35 million USD, and 31 million USD.
The steel export posted the largest turnover in the whole year, reaching nearly 1.4 billion USD, making up about 20 percent of the total export value of goods from India to Vietnam.
BBC to produce film on Phong Nha - Ke Bang for global premiere
A film crew from the BBC Landmark Natural History Series is making a documentary about Vietnamese world heritage site Phong Nha - Ke Bang National Park in the central province of Quang Binh which will be shown to a global audience, reported the Voice of Vietnam.
This information was unveiled by Dang Dong Ha, deputy director of Quang Binh Provincial Department of Tourism.
The film crew went to Phong Nha - Ke Bang to shoot scenes of the world's largest cave, the cave’s unique ecosystem, and images of the limestone and tropical forests of the park, as well as the flora and fauna system that can be found there.
Thomas Webb, a producer for the BBC, extended his thanks to local authorities for their support in the filming process, saying BBC members were amazed by the magical natural beauty that could be found inside the cave system, as well as the range of primeval forests, diverse, and unique ecosystems of Phong Nha - Ke Bang.
Ho An Phong, vice chairman of Quang Binh’s Provincial People's Committee, emphasised that the locality has always created the optimal conditions possible for domestic and international film crews to make films on the national park, which has been twice recognised by UNESCO as a world natural heritage site.
The film is scheduled to be released by the BBC in the fourth quarter of this year and is expected to reach 500 million viewers worldwide.
Vietnam records 3.91 billion USD trade deficit in first half of February
Vietnam reported a trade deficit of 3.91 billion USD in the first 15 days of February as exports decreased, reported the Vietnam News Agency according to statistics from the General Department of Customs.
Containers seen at Hai Phong Port (Photo: VNA)
In the first half of February, Vietnam exported 8.75 billion USD worth of goods while its imports hit 12.66 billion USD. That brought the country's total trade value since the beginning of the year to 81.68 billion USD. During the period, the country also saw a trade deficit of over 2.5 billion USD.
However, economists said that the trade deficit was not a worrisome figure as February was the time the Lunar New Year holiday fell. The country's largest holiday lasted up to nine days, so the number of exported goods decreased.
From the beginning of this year to mid-June, two groups of imported goods saw a turnover of billions of dollars. They were computers, electronic products and components; and machinery, equipment and spare parts.
Nguyen Thuong Lang from the National Economics University told Lao Dong (Labour) newspaper that when imported goods were mainly equipment and raw materials to serve production, rather than consumer goods, the trade deficit should not be a cause for concern.
In the first months of the year, enterprises often ramped up their imports of input materials and spare parts to meet their production and export demands for later months, Lang said.
According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT), in 2022, Vietnam’s exports would continue to face many difficulties and challenges with the biggest ones being the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic that might see complicated and unpredictable developments, affecting global production and trade, including in Vietnam.
Other difficulties would be skyrocketing freight rates and high container rental costs and shortage of containers that would continue to affect export prices and reduce the competitiveness of Vietnamese exported goods.
In addition, the increasing trend of non-tariff trade protection barriers in many major market areas, the volatility of global commodity prices which has become unpredictable, or the risk of inflation, and currency appreciation would also affect exports.
The MoIT said in 2021, Vietnam’s import and export turnover hit a record of nearly 670 billion USD, of which exports made a spectacular breakthrough with an increase of over 19 percent. This was a bright spot for the economy in the context of the pandemic.
Last year, the country had 35 items seeing an export turnover of 1 billion USD, an increase of one item compared to 2020. Of these, there were eight items with an export turnover of over 10 billion USD.
Although accounting for less than 10 percent of the export value of the whole economy, agriculture was the sector that brought "new impetus" to export growth in 2021.
The minister attributed the results to good exploitation of foreign markets, which brought Vietnamese goods deeper into the global production and supply chain.
Vietnamese businesses had taken opportunities from free trade agreements, especially new-generation agreements such as CPTPP, EVFTA and UKVFTA, according to the ministry.
However, it said that there were still problems relating to imports and exports that should be dealt with.
The export scale had increased, but the added value was still low, it said, adding that many industries still exported raw and semi-processed products. In particular, the proportion of enterprises with domestic investment in total exports was still low./.