According to preliminary statistics figures from the General Department of Customs, Vietnam had to import billions worth of animal feed and raw materials every year, and the export turnover of this commodity group increased continuously in the recent years.

In 2017, the export turnover of animal feed and materials only increased by 4 per cent year – on - year, but in 2018 it increased by 14.2 per cent. In January of 2019, the exports of animal feed and materials increased by 10.1 per cent compared to December 2018, but decreased by 4.5 per cent compared to January of 2018. In February of 2019, the exports of animal feed and materials decreased by 30.5 per cent over the previous month, but in April of 2019, the exports of animal feed and materials increased by 10.4 per cent compared to March of 2019 with 62.2 million USD.

The total exports of animal feed and materials in the first 4 months of 2019 reached 202.77 million USD, accounting for 0.25 per cent of the total, but decreased by 7.9 per cent compared to the same period last year.

Vietnam exported animal feed and raw materials mostly to Southeast Asia - the main market, accounting for 35.65 per cent of the proportion.

Among the top 10 export markets for animal feed and raw materials in Vietnam, there were 5 markets with declining turnover - this is one of the reasons for the decline in export turnover of this commodity group.

Accordingly, China was leading with the turnover of 55.18 million USD, but down by 10.37 per cent over the same period last year. In April 2019 alone, Vietnam exported to this market 22.5 million USD worth of animal feed and materials, an increase of 35.83 per cent compared to March of 2019 but decreased by 11.81 per cent compared to April of 2018.

The second was Cambodia market, with the export turnover of 31.25 million USD, increasing by 8.22 per cent compared to the first 4 months of 2018. In April of 2019 alone, it was exported to 7.54 million USD, down by 11.21 per cent compared to March of 2019 but increased by 10.03 per cent compared to April of 2018.

Malaysia ranked third with the export turnover of 21.21 million USD, up by 8.22 per cent over the same period last year. Among these markets, the exports to India, the U.S and Thailand declined.

In the group of 10 key markets, the exports to India fell the most by 35.79 per cent, equivalent to 19.4 million USD. In April of this year, the exports of animal feed and materials to India decreased by 2.73 per cent over the previous month and by 33.93 per cent compared to April of 2018. The next was the US market – decreased by 29.84 per cent and Thailand - down by 28.62 per cent.

Notably, in April of 2019, Vietnam increased the exports of animal feed and raw materials to the two markets, South Korea and Indonesia. The exports to South Korea increased by 104.09 per cent and to Indonesia – increased by more than 2 times (corresponding to 100.24 per cent) compared to March of 2019.