Export enterprises face the problem of raw materials and labor

At the conference to review the Party building work in the first 9 months of the year of Vietnam National Textile and Garment Group - Vinatex held on September 28, a representative of Vinatex said that in the first 9 months of 2024, the consolidated revenue of Vietnam National Textile and Garment Group - Vinatex (code VGT) is estimated at VND 13,036 billion and pre-tax profit is estimated at VND 490 billion, respectively increasing by nearly 1% and 70% over the same period in 2023. Export turnover reached 1,448 million USD, up 7%. Thus, compared to the 2024 plan, in the first 9 months, Vinatex has completed 72.8% of the revenue target and 89% of the annual profit target.

Textile and garment export turnover in the first 9 months of 2024 reached 1,448 million USD, up 7%. (Photo: Hai Linh)

Vinatex assessed that in the first 9 months of 2024, the global economy is likely to continue to recover, with major economies showing signs of improvement, although the pace is still slow. The world's total textile and garment demand in 2024 will still decrease by about 3-5% compared to 2023. In Vietnam, economic, social, production and business activities have begun to recover, with GDP growth in the second quarter positive. In the first 8 months of the year, Vietnam exported 28.6 billion USD worth of textiles and garments, up 7.2% over the same period.

For the garment industry, orders are abundant due to the shift of orders from China, Bangladesh and Myanmar to Vietnam, making production arrangements more favorable than in 2023. While the yarn industry has recovered significantly, it still faces many difficulties as raw cotton prices are greatly affected by speculation and logistics factors, so they increase and decrease suddenly, making it difficult to predict, and the main export markets are China and South Korea - selling prices have continuously decreased with no signs of recovery. In general, in the past 9 months, the biggest and most common difficulty for Vietnamese textile and garment enterprises is the shortage of labor.

In the construction industry, while export activities maintain orders, domestic production activities face many difficulties. According to Mr. Ta Dinh Lan - General Director of CIE1 Construction and Industrial Equipment Joint Stock Company, the export market is stable and remains at the same level as last year. However, the difficulty that businesses are facing is raw materials, due to the impact of fluctuations in the world economic situation, therefore, suppliers do not import ready-made goods to the warehouse, when businesses need raw materials, they will have to order in advance, pay in advance and wait for goods. In addition, businesses are also facing the problem of competition for labor resources, especially for the heavy mechanical industry.

According to Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Hoa - Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City Business Association (Huba), businesses in the area are suffering from orders but being forced to lower prices, when they are in a position of "needing work to maintain production". Along with that, the new technical barriers are increasing mainly around green criteria, that is, the ability to meet the requirements of sustainable development of businesses. In addition, going into the structural analysis, the orders mainly come from the FDI sector, Vietnamese businesses are still "running for food every meal".

Ministry of Industry and Trade continues to support businesses

The latest preliminary statistics of the General Department of Customs show that the total value of Vietnam's import and export of goods in the first period of September 2024 (from September 1 to September 15, 2024) reached 28.55 billion USD, down 24.9% (equivalent to a decrease of 9.47 billion USD) compared to the results in the second half of August 2024. The results achieved in the first half of September 2024 brought the total value of the country's import and export up to September 15, 2024 to 540.72 billion USD, up 15.9%, equivalent to an increase of 74.26 billion USD in absolute terms compared to the same period in 2023.

The total value of Vietnam's exports in the first period of September 2024 reached 14 billion USD, down 32.5% (equivalent to a decrease of 6.73 billion USD in absolute terms) compared to the second period of August 2024. Thus, by the end of September 15, 2024, the total value of Vietnam's exports reached 279.38 billion USD, up 14.8%, equivalent to an increase of 35.98 billion USD compared to the same period in 2023.

The total value of Vietnam's imported goods in the first half of September 2024 reached 14.55 billion USD, down 15.8% (equivalent to a decrease of 2.74 billion USD in absolute terms) compared to the results in the second half of August 2024. Thus, by the end of September 15, 2024, the total import value of the whole country reached 261.34 billion USD, up 17.2% (equivalent to an increase of 38.28 billion USD) over the same period in 2023.

To accompany the business community in export activities, the Ministry of Industry and Trade said it will continue to closely monitor developments in markets and import-export policies of countries to promptly inform associations and businesses. The focus is on: The situation of the Russia-Ukraine war; escalating conflicts in the Gaza Strip and the Red Sea; Developments in the China-EU trade conflict; Trends in sustainable development and greening in EU industries, new regulations in the assessment of supply chains of EU countries for export industries.

In addition, continue to take advantage of and promote cooperation between Vietnam and member countries of sub-regional cooperation mechanisms to seek aid and assistance from development partners and open new markets for Vietnamese goods.

Focus on promoting export promotion activities for key markets, especially making the most of incentives brought by FTAs ​​such as CPTPP, EVFTA, RCEP... Accelerate negotiations, signing, ratification of FTAs, new economic linkages, initially with Israel, UAE, to diversify markets, supply chains and boost exports. Support businesses in carrying out trade promotion activities in new markets, potential markets that individual businesses do not have the opportunity to directly penetrate.

Quickly and strongly shift to official export; Coordinate with domestic agencies and localities to increase exchanges with Chinese agencies and localities to improve efficiency and regulate the speed of customs clearance of import and export goods at border gates between Vietnam and China, especially for seasonal agricultural and aquatic products; implement measures to promote cooperation with China on border trade infrastructure and promote the construction of border trade infrastructure in northern border localities.

At the same time, promote early warning of foreign trade defense cases against Vietnamese export goods; combat evasion of trade defense measures and origin fraud; Continue to support businesses in responding to trade defense cases that have been and are being investigated by foreign countries.