At a steel mill in Vietnam (Illustrative photo: VNA)Vietnam-Laos trade expanded in the first five months of 2021 after a decline triggered by COVID-19, according to the Vietnamese Trade Office in Laos.
The figure surpassed 570 million USD in the period, a year-on-year rise of 25 percent. Exports hit over 280 million USD, up 23.6 percent.
In May alone, two-way trade hit 113 million USD, surging 56.7 percent against the same period last year. Import turnover reported growth of 83.8 percent.
Vietnam’s major exports included machinery, equipment, tools and spare parts in excess of 13.4 million USD; ceramics worth over 1 million USD; and garment-textile about 900,000 USD.
The country also shipped iron and steel products nearing 6.8 million USD and petrol and oil worth 1.9 million USD to its neighbour.
Meanwhile, Vietnam imported close to 10.3 million USD worth of timber and wooden products from Laos, along with ores and minerals, and rubber.
Trade Counsellor at the Embassy of Vietnam in Laos Le Thi Phuong Hoa said that the bilateral trade is projected to marginally rise next month as the countries are striving to curb the spread of COVID-19.
To support businesses, the trade office has devised a list of firms wishing to promote their products in Laos, helped them seek distributors and address bottlenecks in freight transportation, she added./.