Export turnover decreased

According to the report of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development at the August 2023 briefing held on the morning of August 30 in Hanoi, cumulatively until mid-August, the whole country cultivated 6,564.7 thousand hectares of rice, a decrease of 0. 6% over the same period last year; 4,279.4 thousand hectares were harvested, down 1% with an average yield of 64.3 tons/ha, up 0.7 tons/ha; Harvest output was 27.5 million tons, equivalent to the same period last year.

The country planted 775.1 thousand hectares of corn, down 0.9% over the same period last year; 75.8 thousand hectares of sweet potatoes, down 4.7%; 26.5 thousand hectares of soybeans, down 0.6%; 137.6 thousand hectares of peanuts, down 4.1%. Due to good consumption, people expanded the planting area, so vegetables and beans reached 942.5 thousand hectares, an increase of 1.9%.

Cattle and poultry farming develops stably, but pig farming faces difficulties because African swine fever tends to return in some localities. As of the end of August, the buffalo herd decreased by about 1.9%, the cow herd increased by about 0.5%, the pig herd increased by 3.3%, and the poultry herd increased by 2.3% over the same period last year.

In late July and early August, the weather continued to be hot, reducing the progress of planting new forests. Timber exploitation activities also decreased because processing enterprises encountered difficulties in selling products. Accumulated in 8 months, the whole country prepared over 761.2 million seedlings; 151.8 thousand hectares of forest were planted, down 3.3%; Timber output is estimated at 12,357.4 thousand m3, an increase of 2.9%.

In the fisheries sector, aquaculture increased significantly because it was harvest time, and boats were limited to going out to sea because it was the rainy and stormy season. Accumulated for 8 months, total seafood output reached 5.9 million tons, an increase of 1.9%. Of which, mining output reached 2.63 million tons; Farming output reached nearly 3.3 million tons, an increase of 3.2%.

Also according to the report of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the total export and import turnover of agricultural, forestry, and fishery products in the first 8 months of 2023 is estimated at US$ 59.69 billion, down 11.04% over the same period last year; Of which, exports reached US$ 33.21 billion, down 9.5%; imports reached US$ 26.48 billion, down 12.9%; trade surplus of US$ 6.72 billion.

Because the export value of many main export products decreased over the same period, total export turnover decreased. Of which, the seafood group reached US$ 5.68 billion, down 25.4%; forest products reached US$ 8.95 billion, down 25.1%; production input reached US$ 1.32 billion, down 21.9%.

Focus on product groups with fiscal space

Tran Gia Long, Deputy Director of the Planning Department, said that from now until the end of the year there are 4 months left. The target assigned by the Government, the Prime Minister, and the National Assembly is very heavy, with 3 - 3.5 % growth. The total export turnover of the agricultural sector reached US$ 54-55 billion.

This requires the whole industry to make efforts and determination and strive to impact and focus on product groups where we still have room, taking maximum advantage of opportunities to expand the market for the rice industry but under control, ensuring national food security or product vegetables. Wood and wood products… also have a lot of potential.

Also according to Long, for specific tasks, in the future we will focus on completing the tasks of registered programs, projects, and documents according to the direction of the Government and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. Focus on converting agricultural production thinking to agricultural economics, demonstrating synchronization of organization, production orientation, and business development to achieve high efficiency and maximize profits, perfecting the production organization towards modern, efficient, multi-value integration...

According to the Director of the Department of Quality, Processing and Market Development Nguyen Nhu Tiep, the agricultural market situation in the past month highlighted the ban on rice exports from India, Department of Quality, Processing and Market Development has coordinated with the Department of Crop Production and the Ministry of Industry and Trade to have orientations for operating the domestic rice market in the short and long term.

Concluding at the meeting, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Le Minh Hoan emphasized: "Up to this point, the difficulties are still there, even though they have improved, but if you look at it in a certain direction, the positive aspects still prevail over difficulties. Agricultural product exports have achieved many records over a long period, with some products rising to dominate important markets, but seafood and forestry products are still lackluster."

Minister Le Minh Hoan directed that in September, it is necessary to focus on completing the functions and tasks of agencies under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development; attention should be paid to the use of irrigation works and irrigation systems; continue to restructure the industry, working with specialized departments to build an industry ecosystem, promoting industries such as durian and agricultural products; boldly review the effectiveness and feasibility of the projects...