Most experts as well as many leather shoemakers were of the view that the export of upper-leather shoes of Vietnam will increase sharply in next years.

Before the event that EU members did not pass the extension of antidumping tariff on Vietnam's upper-leather shoes to extra 15 months, Diep Thanh Kiet, vice president of Vietnam Leather & Footwear Association (Lefaso) said that if leather shoes export in 2010 recovers like in 2008, the sector's growth will reach at least 15-20 percent against 2009 thanks to EU's antidumping tariff removal.

Being as the traditional producer for export to EU, director of HCM City based Hiep An Shoes Joint Stock Co, Nguyen Duy Thuan said that the volume of orders could jump by 30-40 percent from the current figure because from being imposed with the antidumping tariff of 10 percent three years ago, we lost too many customers.

Hiep An JSC's export turnover attains about $3.2 million a year, in which that of upper-leather shoes accounts for $300,000 that will be increased by $500,000 in next years, Thuan added.

Similarly, according to Truong Thuy Lien-director of Binh Duong province's Lien Phat Shoes Ltd Co, with the average processing price of $2-2.5 a pair of upper-leather shoes, her company expects to receive extra 10 percent of orders compared with current figure of 1.8 million pairs a year. The issue is how to find out enough human resources for production.

Many specialists analysed, Vietnam's upper-leather shoes as entering EU market will have to compete with the same kind of shoes made in China. Along with Vietnam, China will enjoy the removal of EU's antidumping tariff of 16.5 percent.

Regarding competitive advantages, Diep Thanh Kiet said, Vietnamese upper-leather shoemakers seem to be weaker as offering a price higher 10 percent than China's and they Vietnamese producers are not active in supply of production materials.

In long term, Kiet warned enterprises should not too much concentrate on EU market. Instead of this, the shoemakers should balance export and domestic supply and avoid the dependence on export market.

Till late October 2009, total footwear export of Vietnam earned $3.2 billion, equalling to 83.9 percent of the same period of 2008, in which the export to EU made up $1.56 billion. The export of upper-leather shoes to EU gained nearly $800 million.

Tuoi Tre - November 24, 2009