Bright prospect predicted for agricultural products export

Good prospect is forecast in the export of several agricultural products, including rice, in the rest of the year as demand in importing markets has shown optimistic signs, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD).

The ministry predicted that domestic rice prices will continue to stay high until the end of June 2018, buoyed by hope for resuming exports to the Philippines.

According to a report by the General Department of Vietnam Customs, in the first five months of 2018, rice shipments overseas rose 25.7% in volume and 42.6% in value, with prices picking up 13.4% over the same period last year.

Statistics showed that 452,000 tonnes of rice were shipped abroad in May for US$347 million, pushing the five-month rice export volume to 2.66 million tonnes with value of US$1.45 billion. China was still the biggest market of Vietnamese rice.

Vietnamese rice quality has gradually approached international standards, prompted by the shift in world demand for rice of higher quality. According to the MARD, importing countries now prioritise the import of fragrant and Japonica rice varieties. Currently, African countries are also increasing rice imports, creating opportunities for Vietnamese firms in the markets.

Meanwhile, exports of aquatic products in May fetched US$700 million, raising total value in the first five months of 2018 to US$3.1 billion, up 11% over the same period last year.

Particularly, export volume of tra fish in May was estimated at 104,000 tonnes, a year on year rise of 11.6%, marking a record growth rate in many years.

The US, Japan, China and the Republic of Korea were the top markets of Vietnamese aquatic products, which consumed over 50% of total exported volume.

High growth was seen in many markets, including the Netherlands (60%), China (27%), the UK (27%), Germany (26%), and the Republic of Korea (21%).

At the same time, chicken meat is also among products with high hope for growth in latter half of the year. Since the beginning of 2018, export volume of the product expanded three times compared to that in 2017.