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Rice props up sagging export volume
Agricultural and seafood exports reached nearly US$5.2 billion in the first four months of the year, a rise of 7.5 per cent over the same period last year, with higher rice exports largely accounting for the increase, according to the Ministry Agriculture and Rural Development.
During the period, Viet Nam exported 2.53 million tonnes of rice with a total value of $1.16 billion, an increase of 51 per cent in volume and 42.5 per cent in value over the same period last year.
The average export price was slightly higher, at $456 per tonne.
The Philippines continued to be the leading importer of Vietnamese rice, consuming 45.4 per cent of the nation's total exports.
However, other major cash crop such as coffee, tea, cashews and black pepper dipped in both export volume and value.
Seafood, one of Viet Nam's top hard-currency earners, suffered its first drop in 10 years due to the adverse effects of the global recession and bad press in the major markets of Italy, Russia and Egypt.
The sector earned $300 million in exports in April, bringing the total value of the four-month period to $1.05 billion, a fall of 8 per cent from the same period last year.
The ministry has set a target of $12.5 billion for agricultural and seafood exports for the whole year, a decrease of $3.7 billion from last year.
vietnamnet, vietnamplus
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