Vietnam recorded a trade surplus of $930 million with Japan in the first eight months of 2019. In the same period last year, its trade deficit with Japan was $114 million. A 9.3 per cent growth in exports to Japan was a key factor behind this. Three commodities with an export turnover of more than $1 billion to Japan included garment-textiles ($2.55 billion). Shipments of 26 out of 35 main export items to Japan witnessed a rise, according to a Vietnamese newspaper report. Meanwhile, Vietnam’s imports from Japan rose by a mere 0.7 per cent in the period. The country is expected to have a trade surplus of over $1.4 billion with Japan for the entire year.
