The aggregate export revenue in the first quarter of 2023 fell 11.9% from a year earlier to 79.17 billion USD, while imports plunged 14.7% to 75.1 billion USD.
Vietnam's seafood exports on weak global demand
The value of Vietnamese seafood exports slumped 27 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier to 1.85 billion U.S. dollars as inflation in most countries has soared to multi-year highs, denting global growth and exacerbating weak demand, Vietnam News Agency reported on Monday.
The Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) said shipments of shrimps, a key earner, posted a year-on-year plunge of 40 percent in the first three months to 577 million dollars, catfish exports tumbled 32 percent to 447 million dollars, and tuna shipments fell 31 percent to 179 million dollars.
Sales of other wild-caught fishes, the only bright spot in otherwise sluggish seafood exports, edged up 3 percent to 435 million dollars, said VASEP.
Shrimp exports, which normally account for up to 45 percent of Vietnam's total annual seafood exports, faced tougher competition from low-priced products from Ecuador, India and Indonesia, especially in the U.S. market, said Le Hang, VASEP's director of communications.
However, China's optimized COVID-19 response has given Vietnam's catfish exporters renewed hope for a better-than-expected trading environment in the year ahead, Hang said.
Vietnam's seafood exports last year reached 11 billion dollars for the first time, according to VASEP.
Rubber exports decreased by 22.9%
In the first quarter of 2023, Vietnam’s rubber exports decreased by 2.6% in volume and 22.9% in value over the same period last year. It is quite unusual for rubber export price to decrease in the first months of the year.
The Import-Export Department (under the Ministry of Industry and Trade) cited the data from the General Department of Customs, it is estimated that Vietnam's rubber exports in March of 2023 reached about 130,000 tonnes, worth of 184 million USD, down by 0.8% in volume and 0.6% in value compared to February of 2023. In comparison to March of 2022, the figure increased by 15.7% in volume, but decreased by 9.2% in value.
The average rubber export price was at 1,414 USD/tonne, up by 0.2% compared to February of 2023, but down by 21.5% compared to March of 2022.
In the first 3 months of 2023, the country’s rubber exports were estimated at 396,000 tonnes, worth of 552 million USD, down by 2.6% in volume and 22.9% in value over the same period of 2022.
The types of rubber exported from Vietnam are mainly a mixture of natural rubber and synthetic rubber (HS 400280), Latex, SVR 10, SVR 3L, SVR CV60, RSS3, etc. In which, the mixture of natural rubber and synthetic rubber (HS 400280) is still the most exported product.
Regarding the export markets, China currently accounts for 99.71% of the total amount of mixed natural and synthetic rubber exports of Vietnam.
In the first quarter of 2023, most types of rubber exports decreased in both volume and value compared to the same period of 2022. However, the exports of some types of rubber still grew well in both volume and value compared to the same period of 2022, of which notably: synthetic rubber, RSS1, SVR CV40, etc., but these categories only account for a small proportion of Vietnam's total rubber exports.
Coffee exports from Vietnam are estimated to have decreased 1.6% in the first quarter of 2023
Coffee exports from Vietnam are estimated to have decreased 1.6% in the first quarter of 2023 from a year earlier to 572,000 tonnes, equivalent to 9.5 million 60-kg (130-pound) bags, the General Statistics Office said on Wednesday. Coffee export revenue for Vietnam, the world's biggest producer of the robusta bean, fell 2.3% to $1.3 billion in the January-March period, the agency said. The country's coffee shipments in March are estimated at 230,000 tonnes, valued at $522 million.
Pepper exports in the first half of March 2023 reached 16,670 tonnes
According to the Vietnam Pepper and Spices Association, pepper exports in the first half of March 2023 reached 16,670 tonnes worth 37.8 million USD. Harvest of the new crop is coming to the final stage with a decrease in output, while inventories are also not abundant.
T.Huong
Source: Vitic