Inflation lifts agricultural export value

Increasing prices on the world market have pushed agricultural, fish and forestry export values up to over US$10 billion during the first five months of 2011, a surge of 41.5 per cent, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD).

The ministry said that the agricultural export revenue made up $6.1 billion of the total export value, 1.5 times higher compared to the same period last year.

The export value of seadood reached $2.1 billion, a year-on-year increase of 27.3 per cent while exporting forest products earned the sector $1.6 billion, an increase of 19 per cent.

The ministry confirmed a trade surplus of $4 billion gained during the first five months of the year, the export of most products earning profits thanks to increasing prices.

According to MARD, the price of coffee increased 1.6 times, pushing its export value up 230 per cent while the price of pepper increased by 67.9 per cent.

High prices also helped double the export turnover of rubber, its export volume only increasing by 26.3 per cent.

Rice was the only product to experience a downturn in export value, decreasing by 5.9 per cent during May to only $1.7 billion, a decline of 13.3 per cent compared to the same period last year.

During the first five months of 2011, Indonesia, followed by Cuba, Malaysia and Hong Kong, was the largest importer of Vietnamese rice, importing 25.5 per cent in rice volume.

MARD reported that the import of raw materials, fertiliser and other agricultural products increased by 9.9 per cent compared to the same period last year, reaching $6 billion. — VNS

Tags: Vietnam Agricultural exportsa