Vietnam’s $7.31 billion goods trade surplus in October cut its January-October deficit to $12.07 billion, but faster import growth kept the cumulative balance negative, the National Statistics Office (NSO) said Nov. 3.
Exports reached $64.67 billion for the month, up 8.7% from September, while imports fell 1.4% to $57.36 billion. October marked Vietnam’s second consecutive monthly surplus after nine straight months of deficits. Total goods trade rose 3.7% from September and 47.4% from a year earlier to $122.03 billion.
For the first 10 months of 2026, imports increased 37.4% from a year earlier to $511.31 billion. Exports grew 27.5% to $499.24 billion, leaving a deficit despite the recent monthly surpluses. Vietnam had recorded a $19.49 billion trade surplus in the same period of 2025.
Combined goods trade climbed 32.3% to $1.01055 trillion. The NSO said the total surpassed $1 trillion for the first time and set a record. In October alone, exports were 51.4% higher than a year earlier, while imports rose 43.1%.
The cumulative deficit was concentrated among domestic businesses, whose imports exceeded their exports by $37.83 billion. The foreign-invested sector, including crude oil, posted a $25.76 billion surplus and accounted for 81.2% of exports. Production materials made up $481.03 billion, or 94.1%, of imports through October. In a September analysis, the NSO linked rapid import growth to demand for production inputs as manufacturing and exports expanded.
An earlier estimate from the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT), published Oct. 29, put October’s surplus at $6.8 billion and the 10-month deficit at about $12.7 billion. The agencies did not explain the difference. The NSO said its October figures were preliminary and used October trade estimates supplied by Vietnam Customs on Nov. 1.
The NSO’s next monthly economic report is scheduled for Dec. 3.
