VN earns USD 3.55 billion in first quarter
Ha Noi, March 26 (VNA) -- Viet Nam earned USD 1.32 billion from exports in March, a month-on-month increase of 15.5 percent, says the General Statistics Office.
The figure brought first-quarter export turnover to USD 3,554 million, a year-on-year increase of 14.2 percent.
Rice remained the stable with 653,000 tonnes exported between January-March, a year-on-year increase of 78 percent. The return of USD 114 million was, however, only about 40 percent higher than last year because of low prices.
Other rises were: crude oil, USD 800 million, 15 percent; sea products, USD 303 million, 41.6 pecent; vegetables and fruit, USD 76 million, almost 120 percent; coal, USD 24.5 million, 7.8 percent.
But exports of garments and textile, and footwear declined.
The export of rubber, coffee, tea, peanuts and pepper were low compared with last year's first quarter because of falling prices.
Exports of fine art and handicrafts remained stable, earning more than USD 60 million or 90 percent of the last year's first quarter.
The value of imports was USD 3.64 billion, a year-on-year increase of 8.4 percent.
Of this, domestically-invested businesses paid USD 2.5 billion and foreign-invested enterprises more than USD 1 billion.
Imported petroleum cost USD 470 million and machinary and spare parts, almost USD 600 million.
Automobiles imports rose sharply to 8,500 units or a year-on-year rise of 307 percent, while motorbike imports increased to 339,600 units, 70 percent higher.--VNA
