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| Illustrative image (Photo: thanhnien.vn) |
Statistics from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) show that Vietnam has more than 110,000 ha of durian with a yearly output of nearly 850,000 tonnes. The country’s major durian-growing areas include the Central Highlands with more than 52,000 ha, accounting for about 47% of the total area, the Mekong Delta region with 33,000 ha (about 30%), and the Southeast region with 21,000 ha (about 19%).
Thanks to the advantage of high selling prices and the preference of import markets, Vietnamese durian has risen to a much higher position compared to other crops such as pepper, dragon fruit, and rubber. In the last five years, the durian growing area increased by nearly 25% yearly.
According to Do Ha Nam, Chairman of the Board of Directors and General Director of Intimex Group, crops such as coffee and pepper yield profits ranging from 200 - 300 million VND (8,100 – 12,150 USD) per hectare/year, while durian trees generate yearly profits of 2 billion VND per hectare.
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| Harvesting durians in Central Highlands Dak Lak province (Photo: VNA) |
There has never been an agricultural product that quickly brought in billion-dollar export revenue like durian upon entering the global market, Nam said.
Among the largest durian importers, China continues to be the most promising market for the fruit, said Nguyen Quang Hoa, Director of Duong Vu Co., Ltd.
According to statistics from the MARD, Vietnamese durian has reached 24 markets, with the export value to China accounting for over 99% of the total export turnover of the fruit.
Enterprises forecast that in 2024 and the following years, China will continue to be the main consumer of this fruit.
The durian industry has been projected to grow by 7.2% per year in the 2019-2025 period. This is considered an opportunity for Vietnam to sustainably develop its durian industry in the future.
Tran Thanh Nam, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, emphasised the need for durian farmers and export enterprises to ensure the quality, design, and origin of goods when exporting to China to ensure that Vietnamese durians can maintain their position in this market.
According to General Secretary of the Vietnam Vegetable and Fruit Association Dang Phuc Nguyen, there remains a lot of room for Vietnam to export durian to both the Chinese and the global market.
He predicted that the export turnover of the fruit could reach approximately 3.5 billion USD this year.
Clipper Round World Yacht Race’s sailing teams leaves Quang Ninh, starting 8th leg
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| All sailing teams competing in the 2023-2024 Clipper Round the World Yacht Race in 2023-2024 leave Quang Ninh on March 2 (Photo: VNA) |
All sailing teams competing in the 2023-2024 Clipper Round the World Yacht Race left Ha Long International Cruise Port in the northeastern province of Quang Ninh on March 2, officially setting sail for the 5th leg to Jiuzhou Port (Zhuhai city in China’s Guangdong province).
During their 2-week stay in Quang Ninh, nearly 400 sailors on 11 sailing boats participated in a series of experiential activities and events to promote local destinations and tourism organised the provincial authorities.
Laura Ayres, CEO of Clipper Ventures, said that the warm welcome from local authorities and people has provided an experience that exceeded all expectations for those joining this race leg.
She expressed her hope that in the next Clipper Race tournament, there will be participants from Vietnam as members of racing teams or ambassadors.
The Clipper Race was first organised in 1996 in the UK. Since then, almost 6,000 race crews from diverse backgrounds representing more than 60 nations have undergone training and taken part in the competition.
In the 7th race, fifth leg, the Vietnamese sailing team Ha Long Bay, Viet Nam finished in the fifth place, and temporarily stands at the sixth place in the ranking.
Consumption surge in Tet gives a boost to domestic market growth: Experts
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| Shoppers at Big C Thang Long (Photo: hanoimoi.vn) |
A strong rise in goods consumption without any shortage or price hikes during the Lunar New Year (Tet) festival is considered a push for the growth of the domestic market in the whole year.
As early as the end of October, 2023, the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) urged localities and businesses to prepare plans to stockpile goods for Tet, the biggest festival in a year for Vietnamese, while launching a market stabilisation programme and strengthening market management and food safety protection.
In Hanoi, the Department of Industry and Trade reported that the total value of consumed goods during Tet rose about 10% year on year to 40 trillion VND (1.63 billion USD).
Experts held that the peak shopping season during Tet is always a push for production and business activities, promoting the growth of the domestic market.
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| Photo for illustration |
In the context that the Government is focusing on the domestic market towards an economic growth of 6.5% and inflation of 4-4.5% in 2024, the supply-demand connection and stimulation of domestic product consumption is key to the stable and sustainable development of the national economy in following years, they asserted.
Economist Ngo Tri Long said that along with speeding up public investment and removing difficulties facing businesses, it is necessary to boost the growth of the domestic market by reducing value added tax and adjust personal and corporate income taxes to suit the new situation.
Long advised businesses to adjust their production and business methods to provide high quality products to consumers in a fast manner at reasonable prices, while applying promotion policies and build reputations for their brands.
Meanwhile, businesses underlined the need for long-term and stable consumption stimulating policies as well as direct support to enterprises such as cutting down land rent.
The MoIT said that in order to continue ensuring goods supply and market stability, the ministry will keep a close eye on the development of the market and prices to make timely response, while coordinating with other ministries and sectors in regulating prices of State-managed goods, including petrol, contributing to boosting the domestic market and motivating the country’s economic growth in 2024./.