HCMC – Sharp drops in new orders led the foreign direct investment (FDI) companies achieving only US$68.2 billion in import and export value in the first two months of this year, falling by US$9.15 billion against the same period last year.

Recent data of the General Department of Vietnam Customs showed that the country saw foreign trade dropping 13.4% to US$95.83 billion in January-February.

Imports and exports of FDI businesses in the two-month period totaled US$68.2 billion, down 11.8% while the respective figures of local enterprises were US$27.62 billion and 17.1%.

In February alone, FDI enterprises reported export revenue of US$9.23 billion, declining US$914 billion against the previous month.

Total exports of the FDI sector in January-February amounted to US$37.34 billion, a 7.3% drop over the same period of last year. The sector’s import spending decreased by 16.8% to US$30.87 billion.

According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, two major export markets of Vietnam, the U.S. and the EU, achieved economic growth of under 1%, thus affecting their demand for imports.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade is taking measures for boosting market and product diversification to reduce reliance on some markets and products. A focus will be given to Northern Europe, Eastern Europe and Latin America.