According to data from the Vietnam Customs (Ministry of Finance), bilateral trade turnover between Vietnam and India reached nearly $8.37 billion in the first five months of 2026, a 28.4% increase over the same period in 2025.
Despite mounting pressure from stringent technical barriers and rising trade protectionism, import-export turnover between Vietnam and India recorded impressive growth in early 2026. This positive momentum reinforces the roadmap toward a $25 billion bilateral trade goal by 2030.
According to data from the Vietnam Customs (Ministry of Finance), bilateral trade turnover between Vietnam and India reached nearly $8.37 billion in the first five months of 2026, a 28.4% increase over the same period in 2025.
Specifically, Vietnam’s exports to India hit $4.94 billion (up 19%), while imports from India reached $3.4 billion (up 44%). As a result, Vietnam continues to maintain a significant trade surplus of $1.5 billion.
The primary drivers of Vietnam’s export growth remain processing, manufacturing, machinery, and electronics.
Leading the export categories were telephones and components, reaching $113 million and accounting for 20% of the total export turnover. This was followed by computers, electronic products, and components at $767 million (up 27%, accounting for 15.5%), and machinery, equipment, and spare parts at $536 million (up 36%, accounting for 10.8%).
Beyond these staples, several other export groups recorded record-breaking growth rates, including footwear (up 417.7%), coffee (up 412.2%), plastic raw materials (up 104.3%), and textiles and garments (up 34.3%), among others.
To effectively implement the Vietnam-India Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, support Vietnam's double-digit economic growth goal in 2026, and achieve the $25 billion trade target by 2030, the Vietnam Trade Office in India has proposed several key solutions:
First, the Ministry of Industry and Trade should lead the development of an Action Program for the 2026–2030 period. This includes strengthening bilateral trade dialogue mechanisms to remove BIS (Bureau of Indian Standards) barriers and trade remedies, promoting the upgrade of the ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement (AITIGA), and prioritizing trade promotion in electronics, mechanics, construction materials, pharmaceuticals, and energy.
Second, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment should accelerate negotiations for market access for agricultural and aquatic products while resolving quarantine bottlenecks. Specifically, the Department of Animal Health is urged to review records related to facility approval code 747 and consider updating the business name from M/s Penver Foods to Fair Exports (India) Private Limited, as submitted by the Indian side, to ensure a stable supply of processing materials.
Third, the ministries of Science and Technology, and Finance are encouraged to implement cooperation in high-tech, semiconductors, and AI, while supporting businesses in meeting quality standards. Additionally, they should promote payment facilitation solutions to reduce transaction costs, shorten customs clearance times, and optimize logistics.
Fourth, the Ministry of Construction should proactively attract Indian investment into infrastructure and seaport projects.
Finally, the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism should leverage Air India’s direct New Delhi – Hanoi flight route to boost MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions) tourism, wedding tourism, and cultural exchanges. Concurrently, local provinces are encouraged to actively build portfolios to call for Indian investment.