Nine-month agricultural exports rise 9.3%

Key agricultural products post total export revenues of US$15.16 billion, up 4.4% (Photo: VGP)

The export value of agricultural, forestry and aquatic products in the first nine months of 2018 was reported at US$29.54 billion, up 9.3% over the same period last year and equivalent to 73% of the yearly target, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD).

Of the total, key agricultural products posted total export revenues of US$15.16 billion, up 4.4%, aquatic products reported total export revenues of US$6.39 billion, up 7.2% and key forestry products earned total export revenues of US$6.75 billion, up 15.8% over the same period last year.

The MARD also announced that several products saw high export growth including rice (up 23.2%), fruit and vegetables (up 17.1%), wood and wood products (up 15%), and seafood (up 7.2%).

Vietnam's export markets that have witnessed strong growth in the firth eight months of this year include Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Iraq, Russia, China and India.

According to the General Statistics Office, the agricultural, forestry and aquatic sector recorded the highest nine-month export growth over the 2012-2018 period, demonstrating the efficiency in the changes in agricultural structure.

In the first nine months of this year, the sector posted total import revenues of US$23.42 billion, an increase of 11.2% over the same period last year, resulting in a trade surplus of US$6.2 billion, up 2.85% over the corresponding period in 2017.

The sector expects to gain US$3.65 billion worth of export revenue in October to raise the total export revenue in the 10 months to approximately US$33.2 billion, equivalent to 82% of the yearly target.