Currently, the external environment is severe and complex, and global trade development is affected by multiple factors. In particular, sluggish external demand, geopolitics and other factors have posed greater challenges to the foreign trade development of Asian countries. As a result, the import and export data of most countries have shrunk to varying degrees. According to the latest import and export data released by Asian countries, Vietnam’s exports in April fell by 13% year-on-year, exports from South Korea and India also declined by double digits, and Indonesia’s exports in April fell by nearly 30%…
Vietnam: Exports fell 13% year-on-year in April
According to a report by “Vietnam News” on May 6, a recent report issued by HSBC pointed out that Vietnam’s exports continued to experience a double-digit decline in April after a 12% decline in exports in the first quarter.
Vietnam Customs data shows that exports in April were US$107.16 billion, a year-on-year decrease of 13%; imports were US$25.2 billion, a month-on-month decrease of 11%. Vietnam’s exports from January to April fell by 13% year-on-year; imports from January to April fell by 17.7% year-on-year.
HSBC pointed out in the report that Vietnam’s external demand is currently generally weak, with shipments of key products such as textiles, footwear, smartphones and wooden furniture all experiencing significant declines. Some economists analyzed that external risks faced by Vietnam also include continued global inflationary pressures, the central bank’s monetary tightening trend, a more severe than expected economic slowdown in major trading partners, and continued disruptions in global value chains. These factors have intensified Pressure on Vietnam’s exports.
HSBC believes that Vietnam’s economic recovery will experience a slow process. HSBC expects that after experiencing a difficult economic performance in the first quarter, Vietnam’s economy will continue to face challenges in the second quarter, and the full-year growth rate is expected to be 5.2%.
South Korea: Exports fell 14.2% year-on-year in April, posting a deficit for 14 consecutive months
As a developed country in Asia, South Korea’s export slump remains the focus of the industry. On May 1, local time, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy of South Korea released the “Import and Export Trends in April” report. South Korea’s exports in April were US$49.62 billion, a year-on-year decrease of 14.2%. Monthly exports have been year-on-year for seven consecutive months starting in October 2022. decline.
In addition, imports in April were US$52.23 billion, down 13.3% year-on-year, and the trade deficit was US$2.62 billion, a deficit for 14 consecutive months. This is South Korea’s longest-lasting trade deficit since May 1997.
Specifically, semiconductor exports in April decreased by 41% year-on-year, showing negative growth for nine consecutive months. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy of South Korea pointed out that as global semiconductor demand and prices dropped at the same time, the sluggish exports of semiconductors, South Korea’s largest export product, led to the continued sluggishness of South Korea’s overall exports.
India: Exports fall to 6-month low in April
India, another major economy in Asia, saw its exports fall to the lowest in six months in April and the demand outlook is bleak. India’s merchandise exports fell 12.7% year-on-year to $34.66 billion in April, the lowest in six months, while imports fell 14% to $49.9 billion, according to preliminary estimates released by the Indian Ministry of Commerce on Monday.
However, India’s merchandise trade deficit fell 17% in April to $15.24 billion from $18.35 billion in the same period last year, the lowest in 20 months.
Officials attributed the drop in merchandise exports to weak demand in key markets and falling commodity prices. Santosh Kumar Sarangi, director of the Foreign Trade Bureau of the Ministry of Commerce of India, said, “The demand situation in some markets like the EU and the United States does not look good. The demand in the next two to three months does not look very optimistic either. ”
Indonesia: Exports fell by nearly 30% in April
According to a report by Indonesia’s Antara National News Agency on May 15, Indonesia’s Central Bureau of Statistics announced that day that Indonesia’s exports in April 2023 were US$19.29 billion, a year-on-year decrease of 29.4%; imports were US$13.55 billion, a year-on-year decrease of 25.5%.
Thailand: Exports fell 4.6% year-on-year in the first quarter
Thailand’s National Economic and Social Development Council (NESDC) released data on May 15 that real gross domestic product (GDP) increased by 2.7% year-on-year from January to March this year. Tourism demand from Europe and China played a role in driving up the growth rate, which was 0.5 percentage points higher than the growth rate in the same period last year.
GDP growth exceeded that of January-March 2019 (2.6%) before the outbreak of the new crown epidemic, and was the highest level in four years in this quarter.
But manufacturing and exports have become dragging factors. Thailand’s manufacturing industry fell by 3.1% in the first quarter, and exports fell by 4.6% year-on-year.
Cambodia: International trade fell 14.5% year-on-year in the first quarter
Statistics from the General Administration of Customs of Cambodia show that from January to March, Cambodia’s international trade volume reached US$11.252 billion, a year-on-year decrease of 14.5%. Cambodia’s exports were US$5.392 billion, down 5.7% from US$5.716 billion in the same period last year; imports were US$5.860 billion, down 21.3% from US$7.445 billion in the same period last year.
According to data from the General Department of Customs and Excise (GDCE) under the Ministry of Economy and Finance, Cambodia’s clothing exports fell by 25.17% in the first four months of this year to US$2.149 billion, accounting for 29.7% of the country’s foreign aggregate revenue. This is a significant decrease compared to last year, when the country’s clothing exports increased by 12.69% to US$9.035 billion. In addition, exports of knitted and non-knitted garment accessories also declined.
Malaysia: Exports fell slightly in March
Data released by the Malaysian Statistics Department show that the country’s exports in March fell year-on-year for the first time since August 2020.
MalayWest Asia’s March exports fell 1.4% from the same period last year to 129.7 billion ringgit (1 US dollar is equivalent to 4.4 ringgits); imports fell 1.8% from the same period last year to 103 billion ringgits, in the 27th consecutive month There was a year-on-year decrease for the first time after a month-on-year increase; the total import and export volume also fell by 1.6% compared with the same period last year.
Singapore: Non-oil domestic exports contract for sixth consecutive month in March
According to the Chinese version of Lianhe Zaobao, Singapore’s non-oil domestic exports (NODX) shrank for the sixth consecutive month in March, but the contraction narrowed, mainly due to the surge in exports from the pharmaceutical industry.
Data released by Enterprise Singapore showed that non-oil domestic exports fell by 8.3% year-on-year in March, which was narrower than the 15.8% decline in February. In the first quarter, Singapore’s non-oil domestic exports still shrank by 16.2%. In March, exports from the electronics and non-electronics industries shrank for the eighth and sixth consecutive months.
Economists believe that the global economic outlook is uncertain and demand is weak. Singapore’s non-oil domestic exports are expected to shrink throughout this year.
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