The shift toward higher value-added products has enabled the textile-garment and seafood industries to strengthen profit margins in recent years. However, rising labor costs are increasingly eroding the competitiveness of both sectors. Changes from within According to a report by SSI Research, Vietnam’s textile-garment and seafood industries generated a combined export revenue of US$50.5 billion in 2025, accounting for 10.6% of the nation’s total merchandise export turnover. Textile-garment exports alone reached US$39.6 billion, recording a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.7% between 2015 and 2025, thereby securing their position as Vietnam’s third-largest export category after electronics and machinery. Meanwhile, seafood exports brought in US$11.3 billion, with a CAGR of 5.3%. Key contributors included shrimp, which earned US$4.5 billion, and tra fish, which added US$2.1 billion. The textile-garment and seafood industries are highly labor-intensive, attracting substantial foreign direct investment (FDI) and relying heavily on global supply chains. The textile-garment sector currently employs around 3.4 million workers, equivalent to 5% of the national workforce, while the seafood industry sustains livelihoods for approximately 2.5 million people, predominantly in the Mekong Delta. Over the past decade, seafood export turnover has generally ranged between US$8.5 billion and US$10 billion, with a notable surge in […]