Value Of Vietnam’s Farm Exports Expected To Rise

Viet Nam is expected to improve its export-value growth in major agricultural, aquacultural and forestry products this year, amid the recovery of the global economy.
Figures from the Min-istry of Agriculture and Rural Development show that Viet Nam's exports of agricultural, forestry and aquacultural products last year gained high value due to high prices and stable markets.
The global economy would continue recovering, the ministry expects, and the export demand for agricultural, forestry and aquacultural products would increase.
As a result, Viet Nam would maintain growth in export value for its more commonly exported products, includ-ing rice, aquacultural produce, pepper and rubber.
Last year, the aqua-culture sector set a record with more than US$5 billion in export value.
Products were exported to many demanding markets, with the US taking the largest value of 19.3 per cent, followed by Japan with 7.8 per cent. South Korea, Germany and Spain were also among the top consumers of Vietnamese aquacultural products.
In addition, Vietnamese products have entered new markets in South America and the Middle East and have been expected to reach $5.5 billion in export value this year, the highest-level ever. This year, Viet Nam's rubber productivity is hopefully to rise 4 per cent to reach 780,000 tonnes, following the farmland extension of 5,000ha.
The ministry predicts that the first quarter of the year will see high demand for rubber because of the shortage of supply both globally and domestically.
The Vietnamese rubber-tyre market will be more successful this year as the rubber supply in large markets in the US, Europe and Japan is declining, said the Southern Rubber Industry JSC (Casumina), the country's leader in the field.
This is seen as an advantage for Viet Nam and other small markets, according to Casumina.
Viet Nam's rubber export volume is planned to exceed 760,000 tonnes this year for an export value of nearly $3 billion, an almost $700 million increase compared to last year.
(VietNamNews, Vietnam, February 11, 2011)