In the first 10 months of this year, the total export turnover of Vietnam's agricultural, forestry and fishery products to the Russian Federation reached about USD 470 million, an increase of more than 32% compared to the same period in 2020.

Vietnam currently holds the No. 1 position in terms of trade turnover with the Russian Federation among Southeast Asian countries. The total value of trade turnover between the two countries in the 2018 - 2020 period reached about USD 4.5 billion/year, of which the two-way trade turnover of agricultural products between Vietnam and Russia in 2020 reached nearly USD 900 million. Especially, Vietnam's seafood and tropical fruits are very popular with the Russian market and there is still a lot of potential for export to this market.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, in the first 10 months of the year, the total export turnover of Vietnam's agricultural, forestry and fishery products to the Russian Federation reached about USD 470 million, an increase of more than 32% over the same period in 2020, mainly seafood, coffee, cashew, fruit, tea, wood, rice.

According to the Vietnam Trade Office in Russia, each year this country imports about USD 10 million of dried fruit, mainly Vietnamese products. To make the most of the incentives from the Free Trade Agreement between Vietnam and the Eurasian Economic Union, businesses need to actively explore and develop the market.

Another promising segment is aquatic products of the southern seas of Vietnam such as: lobster, pangasius, tuna, and squid. These types of seafood do not compete with Russian goods in the domestic market, but currently only 50 Vietnamese seafood export enterprises are licensed by Russia.

In the first 10 months of the year, seafood exports to this market reached more than USD 140 million, an increase of 30% compared to the same period in 2020.

According to the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), after many years of implementing the Free Trade Agreement between Vietnam and the Eurasian Economic Union, this value has not yet created a sudden growth, partly because technical barriers are too strict from the partner.

At the recent online forum to promote agricultural and fishery trade cooperation between Vietnam and the Russian Federation, the two sides also agreed to establish an organization or association to act as the focal point for information, helping to connect businesses of the two countries.

Kylie Nguyen