Export products from Vietnam gaining popularity

Export products from Vietnam are fast becoming more sought-after by global traders, especially agricultural, aqua and industrial products.

In 2010, importers saw Vietnamese agricultural products holding the first and second positions in the world trade market.

As much as 50 per cent of pepper consumed in the world comes from Vietnam. Vietnamese pepper exporters have controlled the pepper price in the global market for the past three years.

Vietnam overtook India to become the world’s biggest exporter of cashew nuts in 2006 and until now, holds that position.

Nguyen Thai Hoc, chairman of the Vietnam Cashew Association, said a world cashew association will be established and Vietnam will be one of the four founders. The other three co-founders will be India, Africa and Brazil.

Vietnamese Robusta coffee still leads the global coffee market in quality and occupies nearly 50 per cent of coffee production in the world. Vietnamese coffee has appeared on many famous global trading floors of London and ICE New York.

Vietnam earned $1.39 billion from coffee exports in the first four months of the year.

Export prices of Vietnamese rice have also been as high as that of Thai rice, though Thailand is currently the world’s biggest exporter of rice.

Global traders have also recently gone hunting for other famous specialties from Vietnam, like Binh Thuan dragon fruit, Nam Roi pomelo and Hoai Loc mangoes.

Industrial and aqua products

Textile and garment products have exceeded raw oil to top the list of products with an export value of more than $1 billion a year during the past two years.

Total export turnover of textile and garment products hit $11.2 billion in 2010, making Vietnam the third biggest exporter of garments in the world.

Last year many importers switched from China to Vietnam to place their orders.

Vietnam has also been chosen to build factories for manufacturing products for famous brands like Adidas, Puma and Nike.

Tay Do Garment Joint Stock Company, the only company in Southeast Asia to be chosen by Nike Group to subcontract work for making Nike footwear and coats for distribution worldwide.

Electronic products assembled in Vietnam are available in over 50 countries.

Vietnamese furniture is holding a firm position in many countries and ranks second amongst Asian countries exporting furniture.

For the first time, Vietnamese aqua products have climbed to second position in terms of quality and quantity.

India and Myanmar have begun to import more aqua products from Vietnam instead of other countries.

Ngo Le Thu, deputy director of the Saigon Trade Corporation Market Department, said a major US-based distributor visited Vietnam in late 2010 to ask her company to be their supplier of processed agro and aqua products.

Popular Vietnamese brands

More and more made-in-Vietnam products have appeared on shelves in supermarkets around the world, with many brands becoming familiar to shoppers.

Brands like Vinamit dried fruits, Trung Nguyen and Vinacafe coffee, Ba Nhat rattan and bamboo products, Sa Giang deep fried shrimp paste, Ben Tre coconut candy, Nhon Hoa scale, Minh Long and Bat Trang porcelain products and Van Phuc and Ha Dong silk are all recognizable products.

Pho (rice noodle), a Vietnamese indigenous dish has also been exported under the franchise name ‘Pho 24’ to many countries.

Vietnamese enterprises were thankful to the reputation of their product brands in many foreign companies, so they do not need to spend much time on marketing.

Global importers said Vietnam is one of the countries having potential in exporting goods, thanks to its high labor productivity, abundant human and natural resources, low labor costs and a stable political system.

In addition, local exporters have ceaselessly tried to improve their capacity and quality to meet international export standards and requirements.

Nguyen Thi Cuc, head of Ba Nhat Cooperative, said previously her cooperative had relied on importers giving designs for rattan and bamboo products but now the cooperative has taken the initiative in creating its own designs and presenting them to importers.

Ba Nhat products have hence added more value to their items and established a firm footing in the world market. – SGGP

Tags: Vietnam exports, Vietnam exports 2011, Vietnam trade