Vietnam is estimated to post export revenues of nearly 15.1 billion U.S. dollars in the first five months of this year, a year-on-year surge of 30 percent, according to a local trade information agency on Thursday.

Items recording high growths included textiles and garments, up 30 percent to over 2.1 billion dollars; woodwork, up nearly 30 percent to 803 million dollars; coffee, up 16 percent to 507 million dollars; and footwear, up 21 percent to roughly 1.4 billion dollars, said the Trade Ministry's Trade Information Center.

In the period, crude oil and seafood, Vietnam's key foreign currency earners, are set to bring in roughly 3.4 billion dollars, and 1.1 billion dollars, respectively, said center.

Between January and May, Vietnam is estimated to spend more than 16 billion dollars on importing goods, including petroleum products, steel, fertilizers and machines, up 7.3 percent over the same period last year.

Vietnam, which posted export turnovers of 32.2 billion dollars in 2005, a year-on-year increase of 21.6 percent, is boosting exports, diversifying markets and fostering trade promotion in an effort to gain export growth of 16.4 percent in 2006.

Source: Xinhua