Harvesting rice in Song An commune of Vu Thu district, Thai Binh province (Photo: VNA)

Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam’s rice exports by mid-September had declined 0.8 percent in volume but still grown 11.8 percent in value compared to the same period last year.

More than 4.8 million tonnes of rice had been shipped abroad by September 15 bringing home 2.4 billion USD, according to the Agro Processing and Market Development Authority under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

The revenue increase was partly attributed to higher export prices which averaged 489.2 USD per tonne in the first nine months, up 12.4 percent year on year.

Besides, the country also recorded stronger shipments of high-quality rice , with white rice making up 40.7 percent of the total value, Jasmine and fragrant rice 37.6 percent, glutinous rice 17.4 percent, and Japonica rice and others of Japanese varieties 4.2 percent.

The Philippines, the largest buyer, imported 172 million tonnes of Vietnamese rice worth 797.6 million USD in the January-August period, down 2.4 percent in volume but up 10.9 percent in value year on year, accounting for 35.4 percent of total exports during the period.

Growth was also seen in rice shipments to other markets, including Senegal (up 355 times), Indonesia (2.9 times), and China (82.5 percent), statistics showed./.

VNA