The export turnover of Vietnam’s agro-forestry and fisheries products in the first four months of the year is estimated at 8 billion USD, said the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Of this figure, the value of forestry product exports came to 1.5 billion USD, while seafood brought in almost 1.9 billion USD and major agricultural products, 4.6 billion USD.

In the reviewed period, the country exported 2 million tonnes of rice for 989 million USD, with China and Malaysia representing 40 percent of the total export volume. However rice exports to Indonesia , the biggest buyer of Vietnam ’s rice fell by two thirds compared with the same period last year.

The Vietnam Food Association expects rice exports will improve as export contracts registered to April 19, 2012 totalled more than 4.2 million tonnes.

Meanwhile, Vietnam exported 258,000 tonnes of rubber worth 754 million USD, an increase of 30.4 percent in volume but a drop of 12.9 percent in value.

The figure for Vietnam ’s tea exports over the last four month reached 39,000 tonnes worth 55 million USD, year on year rises of 19.1 percent in volume and 16.3 percent in value, with exports to Indonesia and Saudi Arabia double that of the same period last year.

Cashew nuts and pepper still maintained their growth in both volume and value.

Of the value of forestry product exports, timber and furniture represented 1.4 billion USD, with the major importers being the US , China and Japan.-VNA