Agricultural produce and cement see upbeat export in first half

Fruit and vegetables saw a 20 per cen jump on-year in export value in the first half of this year

Buoyant cement and clinker exports in the first half of this year reached 15.4 million tonnes, helping the sector achieve 85 per cent of its full-year export target right in the first half of this year. This volume surpassed the figure of last year's corresponding period by 50 per cent.

This first half’s export volume equalled 2016’s export figure, and was only 6.5 million tonnes less than 2017’s full-year export level.

Market analysts have attributed higher cement exports to the fact that from late last year China reduced its cement production on account of environmental pollution concerns, leading to the rising demand for imports from other countries, including Vietnam.

The cement export volume of major state-owned conglomerate Vicem surpassed 228 per cent the figure from the same period in 2017.

The agricultural sector contributed $19.4 billion to Vietnam’s total export value in the first half of this year.

The best export items during the period were rice with about 3.57 tonnes in export volume, generating $1.81 billion in export value, up 12.5 and 42 per cent, respectively; fruits and vegetables generating $2.1 billion in export value, up 20 per cent on-year; cashews $1.71 billion, up 16.4 per cent on-year; and seafood $3.94 billion, up 10.5 per cent on-year.

With respect to fruit and vegetable exports, exports to Vietnam’s major export markets have posted fair growth. For instance, exports to China reached $1.5 billon (up 18 per cent), to the US $63 million (up 14.6 per cent), to Japan $56.7 million, up 8 per cent, $56.5 million to South Korea (up 15.4 per cent), and $30 million to Thailand (up 26.3 per cent).

Vietnam exporters have proven proactive in promotion activities to boost the presence of Vietnamese agricultural produce in foreign markets.

32 local businesses are attending the Vietnamese Agricultural Produce Week in France hosted by the Hanoi People’s Committee, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, and the Vietnamese Trade Office in France, with a view to boosting high-quality agricultural exports to France and the EU.