Vietnam to earn 1.8 bln USD from steel exports this year

　　Vietnam expects to earn 1.8 billion U.S. dollars from steel exports of million tonnes this year, reported Vietnam News Agency on Tuesday quoting the Vietnam Steel Association (VSA) as saying.

　　VSA attributed the results to the increasing efforts by steel companies to seek new export opportunities at a time when supply is exceeding domestic request.

　　The massive licensing of steel production projects in recent years has led to a supply which currently triples request. The gloomy real estate market has as well resulted in an excess of 365, 000 tonnes of steel in the country's inventory.

　　Meanwhile, the steel industry typically has a surplus of imports so if it fails to find export opportunities, it will not have enough foreign currency to import raw materials for production, said VSA.

　　Trade promotion schemes from the Government and relevant sectors have as well shown a positive effect. These programs have helped companies find partners in foreign countries. Besides traditional markets such as ASEAN countries, the businesses as well boosted their exports to the U.S, the Middle East and the EU.

　　The higher quality as well helped Vietnamese steel products gain a competitive edge in international markets, said VSA.

　　In order to further expand export markets, VSA emphasized the importance of regular exchanges of market data between enterprises and Vietnamese trade offices abroad, said the report.