Garments took the lead with a $921.7-million turnover. — VNA/VNS Photo Vu Sinh

HA NOI (Biz Hub) — Viet Nam has gained US$3.66 billion in revenue from exports to South Korea in the past seven months, representing a modest year-on-year increase of 2.4 per cent.

Figures from the General Department of Customs also showed that from January to July 2014, garments took the lead with a $921.7-million turnover, representing a 36.7 per cent increase from that of the same period last year and making up one-fourth of the country's total export earnings from its trade with South Korea.

Seafoods placed second with $343.8 million, representing a year-on-year increase of 53 per cent, while wood and wood products placed third with $267.8 million, a year-on-year increase of 47.4 per cent.

Other exports likewise experienced signficant growth. Earnings from mobile phone exports increased by 300 per cent, followed by electric cables, 100 per cent; handbags and suitcases, 45 per cent; machinery and spare parts, 40 per cent; and leather and footwear, 29 per cent.

Officials of the Vietnamese Trade Office in Korea urged domestic enterprises to exert more effort in accelerating trade promotion, improving production capacities and sharpening competitive skills to further tap into the lucrative South Korean market.

They noted that South Korean consumers have been shopping in small and medium-sized supermarkets, hypermarkets and traditional markets. They also preferred environment-friendly food and were paying more attention to the country of origin of their food purchases, giving top priority to Korean-made goods.

To successfully penetrate Korean markets, Vietnamese exporters should ensure the quality of their products, with focus on food safety and hygiene, and make their goods look different from those already available in the market, the officials said.

Last year, Vietnamese exporters earned $6.6 billion from the South Korean market, representing an 18.9 per cent year-on-year increase that accounted for 24.3 per cent of the total value of exports to the Asian country. — VNS