7 months: Agricultural exports increased by nearly 12%.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, agricultural, forestry, and fisheries exports in July were estimated at US$2.38 billion, bringing the total export value of the sector for the first seven months of 2014 to US$17.43 billion, an increase of 11.8% compared to the same period in 2013.

Seafood continues to be a key export item in agricultural products.

Of these, the export value of agricultural products is estimated at US$8.31 billion, an increase of 5.9%; the export value of aquatic products is estimated at US$4.2 billion, an increase of 24.5%; and the export value of forestry products is estimated at US$3.52 billion, an increase of 13.2% compared to the same period in 2013.

The sector with the strongest growth was pepper, with estimated export volume in July 2014 reaching 9,000 tons and reaching $74 million, bringing the total pepper export volume for the first seven months to 119,000 tons with a value of $862 million, an increase of 28.6% in volume and 41.8% in value compared to the same period in 2013.

The cashew industry has consistently experienced growth in both volume and value, with increases of 15.7% in volume and 17.5% in value compared to the same period in 2013. Accordingly, cashew exports in July are estimated at 25,000 tons with a value of 169 million USD, bringing the total cashew exports for the first seven months of 2014 to 158,000 tons with a value of 1.02 billion USD.

The seafood industry remains a key export sector, with export value reaching US$4.2 billion in the first seven months, a 24.5% increase compared to the same period in 2013.

However, many sectors experienced a decline in both export value and volume.

The sharpest decline was in rubber exports, down 10% in volume and 32.3% in value compared to the same period in 2013. Estimated rubber exports in July 2014 reached only about 103,000 tons with a value of US$175 million. Based on this estimate, rubber exports in the first seven months of the year reached 451,000 tons with a value of US$828 million.

The rice industry has continued its downward trend since the beginning of the year. Rice exports in July 2014 were estimated at 606,000 tons, worth $278 million, bringing the total rice exports for the first seven months to an estimated 3.86 million tons and $1.75 billion.

According to Chinhphu.vn