Vietnam posts trade surplus of US$2.32 billion in 2016

Vietnam enjoyed a trade surplus of US$2.32 billion last year, according to the General Department of Customs (GDC), slightly lower than the initial estimate of US$2.68 billion made by the General Statistics Office.




The GDC announced on January 17 that exports reached US$176.5 billion last year, up 8.9% from 2015 while imports rose 5.2% to US$174.19 billion.

Over the past year, the GDC collaborated with other agencies to uncover more than 15,400 cases of smuggling and trade fraud, confiscating goods worth VND416 billion (US$18.3 million).

In 2017, the GDC has been assigned by the National Assembly to collect VND285 billion (US$12.54 billion) in budget revenues.

In order to meet the target, the department will focus on removing difficulties for enterprises, maximising the facilitation of export and import activities, stepping up efforts to crack down on trafficking, and modernising its systems.

Nhan Dan