QI agriculture posts nearly 49 percent growth in trade surplus
Vietnam’s agriculture sector gained a trade surplus of nearly 2.9 billion USD in the first quarter of 2020, up 48.9 percent from a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam’s agriculture sector gained atrade surplus of nearly 2.9 billion USD in the first quarter of 2020, up 48.9percent from a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and RuralDevelopment.
During the three-month period, the sector achieved a totaltrade value of approximately 15.2 billion USD from horticultural, forestry andaquatic products, with exports worth 9.06 billion USD, equal to the same periodlast year; and imports of about 6.2 billion USD, down 13.2 percent.
Exports of key horticultural products declined 3.1 percentyear-on-year to 4.2 billion USD. A similar trend was witnessed in exports of mainforestry products (2.8 billion USD, down 16.13 percent), aquatic products (1.5billion USD, 14 percent) and livestock products (109 million USD, 21.8percent).
However, several items maintained growth, including rice,cassava, and wood and timber products. The country exported 1.7 million tonnesof rice from January – March for 774 million USD, up 19.9 percent and 27.8percent, respectively. Exports of wood and timber products valued 2.62 billionUSD, up 15.9 percent.
The biggest contraction was seen in the export of tra fish,which was worth 238 million USD, down 61.5 percent. It was followed by rubber(down 26.1 percent), tea (19 percent), and pepper (13.9 percent).
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the US replacedChina as Vietnam’s largest buyer who imported 2.1 billion USD worth ofagricultural products, up 18 percent and accounting for 23.2 percent of thetotal export revenue. China came second with 21.4 percent,followed by the EU (13.1 percent), Japan (8.9 percent), and ASEAN (16.4percent)./.
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has said that in the current situation, rice exports should be controlled to ensure food security in line with the Government’s Decree No.107.
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Illustrative image (Photo: VNA) 
