Containers being imported at Huu Nghi Border Gate in Lang Son Province. Viet Nam's trade deficit with China fell by 15.6 per cent year-on-year to $6.5 billion in the first quarter. — VNA/VNS Photo Tran Viet

HA NOI (Biz Hub) — Viet Nam saw a reduction in its trade deficit with China in the first quarter of 2016, raising expectations of an ongoing decline in this deficit for the whole year.

According to the General Statistics Office (GSO), in the first quarter of this year, Viet Nam's trade deficit with China fell by 15.6 per cent year-on-year to US$6.5 billion.

During the first quarter, Viet Nam gained a year-on-year growth of 8.2 per cent to reach $3.9 billion from exports to China due to an increase in the export of some key products, including fruit and vegetables, up by 72.8 per cent, and telephones and their components, up by 77.1 per cent.

Meanwhile, the nation paid $10.4 billion for imports from China, 8 per cent lower than in the same period last year, due to a reduction in the import of some key Chinese products, such as equipment, down by 13.1 per cent, and telephones and their components, down by 18.4 per cent.

The positive change was expected to promote the total export value from Viet Nam to China to $18.5 billion for the whole year, higher than the $17.14 billion recorded in 2015, according to the GSO.

The total import value to Viet Nam from China was also predicted to fall to $46.5 billion for the whole year from a record high of $49.53 billion in 2015.

Therefore, Viet Nam's trade deficit with China could drop to $28 billion for 2016 from the record level of $32.29 billion in 2015, the Thời báo Kinh tế Việt Nam (Viet Nam Economic Times) newspaper reported.

The good news came in response to the early results of opening the local markets and integrating further with the global market with the signing of many free trade agreements. These agreements will help Viet Nam restructure its import and export markets in the future.

However, the office said imports from China had still accounted for a large percentage of the total national imports.

According to the General Department of Customs, the total import value to Viet Nam from China accounted for 28 per cent of the total national import value in the first two months of this year, 2.7 times higher than the total national export value to China. — VNS