Half-year trade surplus hits US$4 billion despite COVID-19

Elsewhere, the domestic economic sector earned a total of US$41.38 billion in export revenue, marking an increase of 11.7% and accounting for 34.1% of the total export value.

The six-month import value of commodities fell by 3% to US$117.17 billion in comparison with the same period last year, of which a total of 22 imported items reached over US$1 billion each, making up 81.2% of the total import turnover.

Most notably, June saw the country enjoy a trade surplus of US$500 million alone, with the domestic economic sector recording a trade deficit of US$10.2 billion, while the foreign-invested sector experienced a trade surplus of US$14.2 billion during the first half of the year.

Experts say the positive trade surplus is expected to help improve the national payment balance, contributing to increasing foreign exchange reserves and stabilizing the VND/USD exchange rate. It will also help accelerate economic growth through stimulating market consumption.