Vietnam's total trade with the European Union (EU) stood at US$41.19 billion in the first nine months of 2018, according to the General Department of Vietnam Customs (GDVC).
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This resulted in Vietnam's trade surplus of US$21.24 billion with the 28-nation bloc in the January - September period.
In 2017, trade activities between Vietnam and the EU amounted to US$50.46 billion in 2017, up 11.9% year-on-year and accounting for 11.8% of the country's trade turnover. Of the total, exports stood at US$38.33 billion, up 12.7% or US$4.33 billion year-on-year.
Vietnam's major products shipped to the EU last year included computers, electronic products and accessories (up US$784 million year-on-year), phones and phone parts (up US$719 million), machinery, equipment, tools and other components (up US$575 million), footwear (up US$428 million) and iron and steel (up $296 million).
Meanwhile, the country mainly imported computers, electronic products and accessories (up US$350 million year-on-year), machinery, equipment, tools and other components (up US$240 million) and pharmaceutical products (up US$221 million).
Among EU members, Vietnam posted the biggest trade surplus of US$6.44 billion with the Netherlands, followed by the UK with US$4.68 billion, Austria with US$3.4 billion, Germany with US$3.16 billion, Spain with US$2 billion and France with nearly US$2 billion. On the other hand, the country recorded the biggest trade deficit with Ireland and Finland in 2017, at US$1.27 billion and US$128 million, respectively.
Reports from the European Trade Policy and Investment Support Project (EU-MUTRAP) showed that Vietnam's export turnover to the EU could reach some $33 billion by 2020, $42 billion by 2025, and $47 billion by 2030.
