Rubber export in the first 2 months of 2021 increased by 89.9% in volume and 2.1 times in value over the same period in 2020.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, rubber export volume in Feburary 2021 is estimated to reach 130 thousand tons with a value of USD 211 million, bringing the volume of rubber exports in the first two months of 2021 to 320 thousand tons and USD 516 million, an increase of 89.9% in volume and 2.1 times in value over the same period in 2020.

The average export rubber price in January 2021 reached USD 1,608/ton, an increase of 10.3% over the same period in 2020.

According to statistics, the mixture of natural rubber and synthetic rubber (HS: 400280) is still the most exported rubber category in January 2021, with the volume reaching 127.33 thousand tons, worth USD 201.01 million.

This item accounts for 67.1% of the total rubber export volume of Vietnam.

"China, India and Korea are the three largest rubber consumption markets of Vietnam in January 2021, accounting for 72.7%, 4.6% and 2.7% of the market share, respectively" - Dr. Nguyen Quoc Toan - Director of Department of Agro-Processing and Market Development (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development), said.

With the export turnover of USD 2.3 billion/year, the rubber industry has become one of the most important agricultural and forestry export sectors of Vietnam today.

However, the requirement for sustainable development is a problem for this potential manufacturing industry.

According to the Vietnam Rubber Association, a good implementation of sustainable development will create great opportunities for businesses to improve their reputation and competitiveness, attract customers, as well as improve productivity and reduce the cost through efficient use of resources, thereby engaging deeply into the global value chain which tends to shift to Vietnam.

In fact, Vietnam's rubber industry is also making efforts towards sustainable development, area stability, increasing productivity and economic efficiency, and promoting the use of rubberwood as an environmentally friendly raw material, reducing market and climate change risks with intercropping or integrated planting models to diversify income sources, increase carbon stocks, reduce chemical use, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, etc.

Kylie Nguyen