Agriculture remains a bright spot in the overall gloomy export picture in the first five months of this year, with agro-forestry-aquaculture export turnover in May rising 9.5% month-on-month and 8.5% year-on-year to reach 2.9 billion USD.

The export value of fruits and vegetables in May nearly doubled compared to the previous month, hitting an estimated 500 million USD. Meanwhile, that of rice and coffee surged 53.1% and 28.5% to 530 million USD and 418 million USD, respectively.

Secretary General of the Vietnam Fruit & Vegetables Association Dang Phuc Nguyen attributed the increases to Vietnam’s signing of protocols to export durian, sweet potato, and banana to China; pomelo to the US; and lemon to New Zealand.

Nguyen showed optimism about the country’s 4-billion-USD target in vegetables and fruits export this year.

According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT), Vietnam raked in 136.17 billion USD from goods exports in the last five months, down 11.6% year-on-year, with all sectors meeting difficulties as the demand has decreased globally, especially for non-essential consumer goods.

However, a positive sign of recovery was seen in May when export earnings picked up 4.3% month-on-month to hit 29.05 billion USD, helping the country enjoy a trade surplus of nearly 10 billion USD. Compared to the same period last year, the figure decreased 5.9% but the declining rate has slowed down.

Deputy General Director of the MoIT’s Import-Export Agency Tran Thanh Hai said it is forecast that Vietnam’s exports will recover in the second half in the context of falling inflation in many markets. In addition, inventories in many countries have dropped significantly, prompting importers to place new orders.

Free trade agreements (FTAs) that Vietnam signed with partners will continue to help improve the competitiveness of Vietnamese goods, bringing opportunities for Vietnamese businesses to promote their export activities, Hai noted.

VNA