The volume, excluding transited goods not unloaded at seaports, included 61.95 million tonnes of exports (up by 2 per cent), 67.49 million tonnes of imports (down by 9 per cent) and 110.99 million tonnes of domestic goods (up by 10 per cent), it recently said.
Container throughput also increased by 2 per cent to over 8.3 million TEUs during the period.
The administration said 2 per cent is the slowest growth in recent years though Vietnam has entered the post-pandemic new normal.
Seaports in many localities have recorded a sharp decline in volume. At Binh Thuan, it was down by 28 per cent from a year earlier, at Can Tho, it was 25 per cent, and at Kien Giang, it was 12 per cent.
Major ports also witnessed drops from 0.5 per cent to 4 per cent: Hai Phong was down by 0.5 per cent, Ho Chi Minh City by 2.8 per cent and Vung Tau by 4 per cent.
The growth slowdown has been attributed to different factors, including lack of complete recovery of production and export and import activities by domestic enterprises.
Besides, China’s zero-COVID policy has also affected firms doing business with Vietnam’s largest export and import market.
ALCHEMPro News Desk (DS)
Receive daily prices and market insights straight to your inbox. Subscribe to AlchemPro Weekly!