Laos-Vietnam year-on-year trade drops by 27.3 percent to US$99.2m in January

The value of year-on-year trade between Laos and Vietnam slumped by 27.3 percent to US$99.2 million in January, despite the lifting of Covid-19 restrictions, according to media reports.
The decline was due to the long New Year and Lunar New Year holidays, including a decrease in revenue with Laos, the Nhan Dan news agency reported, citing the Vietnam Trade Office in Laos.
Laos’ exports to its neighbour were valued at US$71.4 million, down 23.8 percent, while the value of goods imported from Vietnam reached US$27.8 million, a drop of 35 percent from the year before.
However, some export items from Vietnam to Laos posted sudden increases in January, including vegetables, with revenue of US$1.94 million, up 242.2 percent, and oil and petrol with US$3 million in revenue, up by 24.9 percent.
Laos’ main exports to Vietnam were sweetcorn, rubber, wood and wood products, and fertiliser.
Two-way trade revenue between Laos and Vietnam in 2022 grew 24 percent year-on-year to reach US$1.7 billion. This was impressive growth, surpassing the target of about US$1.6 billion set at the 44th Laos-Vietnam Intergovernmental Committee Meeting.
Vietnam exported US$656 million worth of goods to its neighbour in 2022, up by more than 10 percent. They mainly comprised oil and gas, fertiliser, steel, machinery and accessories, and means of transport.
Meanwhile, Vietnam’s imports were valued at over US$1 billion, a year-on-year rise of 35 percent, with the main items being wood and wood products, fertiliser, rubber and sweetcorn, according to the Vietnam News Agency.
In December alone, the value of two-way trade rose to US$211 million, up 60 percent from a year earlier.
Laos and Vietnam – an important trading partner of Laos - have set a target to increase two-way trade turnover by 10-15 percent in 2023.
Vietnam is among the top three foreign investors in Laos with 417 valid ongoing projects valued at US$4.3 billion as of September last year.

By Times Reporters
 (Latest Update March 8, 2023)