If the US implements the announced 46% reciprocal tariff, Vietnamese textile and garment products would face average duties between 61-62% when entering the market, given the current 15-16%.
Vietnam needs breakthrough solutions to upgrade the value chains of the garment and footwear industries with the focus on achieving self-sufficiency in raw materials to increase added value and develop sustainably.
Vietnam's leather and footwear enterprises face many challenges in the remaining months of 2022, especially the lack of market information, according to the Vietnam Leather, Footwear and Handbag Association (Lefaso).
Vietnam’s footwear exports are likely to grow 5 percent this year although COVID-19-induced supply chain disruptions caused decreases in August and September, according to Phan Thi Thanh Xuan, Secretary-General of the Vietnam Leather, Footwear and Handbag Association (Lefaso).
Thanks to the preferential tariffs under the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement, footwear exports to the bloc’s 27 member countries increased by 19.2 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2021.
Vietnam's leather and footwear industry was on course for a strong recovery as more international fashion brands were valuing the country as an important part of the global supply chain, according to the Vietnam Leather, Footwear and Handbag Association (LEFASO).
Footwear exports were estimated to hit 9.53 billion USD in the first seven months of 2020, a year-on-year decline of 7.9 percent, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade.
Footwear exports to the US have been forecast to struggle in the remaining months of this year due to falling demand, though it recorded a 10 percent increase in revenue in the first quarter of the year.
The EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) is expected to provide a host of opportunities to Vietnamese enterprises to bolster their exports, but they must also meet strict requirements in order to fully capitalise on the deal, insiders have said.
An online trade exchange is slated to be held from May 28-30 with the participation of 60 footwear importers from the US, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT).
The leather – footwear industry of Vietnam now has big opportunities thanks to FTAs, but to make full use of those deals, it needs to remove bottlenecks relevant to the supporting industry.
Exports of footwear, suitcases and bags of all kinds are estimated at 19.5 billion USD in 2018, according to the Vietnam Leather, Footwear and Handbag Association (LEFASO).
Vietnamese footwear exports rose 21.2 percent against the same period last year to more than 5.85 billion USD for the first six months of the year, the General Department of Customs reported.
