The second 'black gold' fever in history

Vietnam has the world's largest warehouse

Nearly a decade ago, pepper prices suddenly skyrocketed globally. The commodity’s rise began in 2010 and peaked in 2015, at VND230 million per ton. Converted to gold at that time, 1 ton of dry black pepper was equivalent to 6.5 taels of gold.

This is also the reason why pepper is considered the "black gold" of Vietnam, and at the same time becomes a billion-dollar commodity of the agricultural industry.

However, this historic price fever quickly cooled down. Pepper prices began to plummet in the following years. By 2019, pepper prices were only 36 million VND/ton, "evaporating" 85% compared to the peak. Since 2020, pepper prices have recovered but remain at a low level.

This year, the price of “black gold” suddenly increased sharply and entered the second price fever in history. Vietnam is holding the world’s largest warehouse with production accounting for 40% and export accounting for 60% globally.

Many countries are buying 2-3 times more goods, pushing the price of Vietnamese pepper to skyrocket. Experts and businesses say that pepper has officially entered a new price increase cycle after a period of being at rock bottom. It is worth noting that the price increase cycle could last more than a decade and it is very likely that this spice of our country will jump to the threshold of 350,000-400,000 VND/kg.

Today, domestic pepper prices increased slightly again.

Pepper prices today (June 14), in the Central Highlands and Southeast regions increased slightly from 1,000 - 5,000 VND/kg in some localities, trading around 160,000 VND/kg, the highest purchase price in Dak Nong and Binh Phuoc provinces was 162,000 VND/kg.

Accordingly, Dak Lak pepper price is purchased at 160,000 VND/kg, Chu Se pepper price (Gia Lai) is currently at 160,000 VND/kg, an increase of 5,000 VND/kg compared to yesterday. Dak Nong pepper price today is recorded at a record price of 162,000 VND/kg, an increase of 2,000 VND/kg compared to yesterday.

In the Southeast region, pepper prices today increased from 1,000 - 3,000 VND/kg. Specifically, in Ba Ria - Vung Tau, it reached 161,000 VND/kg, an increase of 1,000 VND/kg; in Binh Phuoc, pepper prices reached 162,000 VND/kg, an increase of 3,000 VND/kg.

After a slight decrease yesterday, domestic pepper prices today increased slightly again, to 160,000 - 162,000 VND/kg. Thus, domestic pepper prices today increased slightly in most key localities compared to yesterday, an increase of 1,000 - 3,000 VND/kg.

The increase in domestic pepper prices has made farmers extremely excited but has caused many businesses headaches and difficulties.

One of the main factors pushing up pepper prices is shipping costs. According to businesses in the logistics service sector, the reason for the increase in shipping costs is that the war is affecting shipping costs globally.

Shipping rates suddenly increased by about 100% on all routes, even routes from Vietnam to the US more than doubled compared to March. More worryingly, despite the high prices, exporters have difficulty booking ships to export goods.