Hanoi (VNA) - Vietnam exported 10.61 billion USD worth of agricultural, forestry and fishery products in the first quarter of 2021, up 19.7 percent compared to the same period last year.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), in March alone, exports reached 4.12 billion USD, up 20 percent from the same month in 2020 and 57.4 percent against the previous month.

In the first quarter, the export revenue of the main agricultural goods reached 4.59 billion USD and key forestry products 3.94 billion USD, while fishery exports were estimated at 1.69 billion USD.

Meanwhile, imports of agricultural, forestry and fishery products in the first quarter hit 7.74 billion USD, up 44.7 percent.

However, the agriculture sector saw a year-on-year reduction of 18.2 percent in trade surplus to 2.87 billion USD in the first three months of this year.

Several exports with revenue during January-March that were higher than in the same period last year included rubber, tea, fruit and vegetables, cassava, shrimps and timber, according to the ministry.

Revenue surged by 116 percent to 721 million USD for rubber, 41.5 percent to 3.7 billion USD for timber and wooden products, and 49.2 percent to 199 million USD for rattan, bamboo and sedge products.

There were some products that saw a decrease in export value, such as coffee (down 11.3 percent to 771 million USD), rice (17.4 percent to 606 million USD), cashew (5.8 percent to 634 million USD) and tra fish (pangasius) (2.6 percent to 373 million USD).

In terms of export markets, Asia accounted for 54.4 percent of total exports, followed by America at 32.2 percent and Europe at 11.8 percent.

Exports to Vietnam’s four main markets, namely the US, China, Japan and the Republic of Korea, recorded growth rates of 45.8 percent, 39.5 percent, 3.4 percent and 9.5 percent, respectively.

The ministry said to increase the exports, it will promote international trade promotion activities. At the same time, it will help export firms implement market regulations and overcome technical barriers in agricultural trade in key export markets.

It will also update notices and warnings from trading partners and the World Trade Organisation (WTO) member countries.

For the domestic market, the ministry will collect information about prices, production and supply of agricultural products in localities nationwide, especially localities directly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic./.