Hanoi's goods imports rose 41% from a year earlier to an estimated 42.66 billion USD in the first eight months of 2026, the city's Statistics Office said.
Imports of machinery, equipment and spare parts increased 45% to 8.78 billion USD in the period, reflecting stronger production activity, investment and demand for production inputs among businesses.
Petroleum product imports nearly doubled, climbing 96% to 5.43 billion USD, while imports of transport vehicles and spare parts rose 77% to 4.37 billion USD, and imports of computers, electronic products and components surged 36.4% to 3.07 billion USD.
The domestic economic sector accounted for 35.5 billion USD of total imports in the eight-month period, up 44%, while the foreign-invested sector imported 7.16 billion USD worth of goods, up 29%.
According to the office, Hanoi's exports during the January-August period increased 8% year-on-year to an estimated 14.89 billion USD.
The foreign-invested sector continued to post significantly faster export growth than the domestic economic sector, underscoring its growing contribution to the city's export performance and highlighting the need for domestic companies to strengthen competitiveness and deepen their participation in global value chains, the office said.
Computers, electronic products and components were among the city's strongest-performing categories, rising 21% to 2.26 billion USD. Agricultural products also increased 22% to 1.26 billion USD.
Exports of transport vehicles and spare parts rose 7% to 2.04 billion USD, while machinery, equipment and spare parts increased 1.2% to 2.14 billion USD.
Some sectors, however, faced weaker overseas demand. Textile and garment exports fell 4% to 1.53 billion USD, while wood and wood product exports fell 12% to 481 million USD. Telephone and component exports plunged 66% to 42 million USD.
The office said the declines underscored continuing pressure from international markets and the need for businesses to improve their adaptability.
Head of the office Pham Hoai Nam said Hanoi should strengthen domestic production capacity, raise the added value of its products and deepen its integration into supply chains, with import growth significantly outpacing export growth.
The city should also step up trade promotion, strengthen links between businesses and domestic and international markets, help firms address operational difficulties and encourage greater use of free trade agreements, he said.
Such measures would help Hanoi expand export markets, diversify trading partners and reduce reliance on a limited number of traditional markets, Nam added.
12% export growth through 2030
The city aims to achieve average annual export growth of at least 12% during 2026-30, with the city seeking to diversify export markets, boost high-tech and value-added products and reduce reliance on traditional markets, according to a plan signed by a city official.
Under the plan, the city also aims to increase the share of high-tech products to more than 50% of total export value by 2030.
The capital will seek to expand merchandise exports alongside investment in infrastructure, science and technology, digital transformation, green manufacturing and workforce development, while promoting sustainable trade and environmental protection.
It plans to make greater use of commitments under free trade agreements, particularly next-generation pacts, to diversify products and export destinations and mitigate market risks.
The city will focus on key markets including the US, EU, Japan, the Republic of Korea, China and ASEAN, while seeking to expand into emerging markets in the Middle East, South Asia, Africa and Latin America.
Priority export sectors include computers, electronics and components; machinery, equipment and spare parts; textiles and garments; footwear; wood and wood products; agricultural and processed food products; handicrafts; and supporting-industry products.
The plan calls on businesses to expand production capacity, upgrade technology, improve product quality, increase processing and develop green and higher-value products for overseas markets.
Hanoi will also seek to increase the localisation rate of production inputs and strengthen links between domestic companies and supply chains, with support for businesses to meet international standards and develop supporting industries.
The city plans to encourage businesses to use global e-commerce platforms, including Amazon, Alibaba, ShopeeGlobal and Temu, while developing digital storefronts and expanding online trade promotion.
It will also invest in logistics infrastructure such as warehouses, container yards, bonded warehouses, inland container depots and multimodal logistics centers, while improving connectivity between seaports, railways, airports and expressways.
The plan also calls for the development of green logistics and the adoption of automation, enterprise resource planning and supply-chain management systems to improve productivity and export performance.
City authorities said they would continue working with relevant agencies, industry associations and logistics firms to help Hanoi-based businesses speed up their exports.
As part of those efforts, the Hanoi Support Centre for Enterprise and Investment Promotion (SCE), under the Hanoi Department of Finance, recently held a conference to brief businesses on newly issued Decree No 169/2026/NĐ-CP, which sets out penalties for administrative violations in the customs sector.
The new decree requires businesses to proactively update their knowledge of customs regulations, particularly those governing administrative penalties related to import-export activities and customs procedures.
