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| Vietnam's annual bird's nest output is about 150 tonnes worth over 600 million USD - Illustrative image (Photo: VNA) |
Phuong said since the first batch of Vietnamese bird's nest products was exported to China in November last year, over 700 kg of bird's nests have been exported to this market.
She advised businesses to register with the Department of Animal Health for licensing before engaging in exports.
Recently, the Hai Yen Nha Trang One Member Limited (The Hai Yen) has exported its first batch of bird's nests to China by air.
CEO of The Hai Yen Tran Thanh Hai said the company has considered exporting bird's nests to the Chinese market as its strategic goal.
To produce high-quality products, The Hai Yen has paid special attention to carefully selecting and developing resources of high-quality raw materials, applying advanced processing techniques to better the quality of products and preserve the best nutritional content of bird's nests, she noted.
China is the world largest bird’s nest consuming market with a demand of more than 300 tonnes per year, accounting for about 80% of the global consumption.
Chinese data showed that China imported 220 tonnes of bird’s nests in 2020, more than 300 tonnes in 2021 and 425 tonnes in 2022, mostly from Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and now Vietnam.
In Vietnam, swift farming for nests for commercial purposes is a new industry, which started in 2004 in southern provinces and has since developed rapidly over the last decade.
Currently, 42 out of 63 provinces engage in bird's nest farming with over 22,000 bird's nest houses. Vietnam's annual bird's nest output is about 150 tonnes worth over 600 million USD. With the effectiveness of the protocol with China, the bird's nest industry has many opportunities for development.
To facilitate businesses’ bird's nest exports, the Department of Animal Health has issued detailed guidelines on the registration process for exporting bird's nests from Vietnam to China. It also issued guidelines and organised the supervision of disease prevention and food safety in accordance with regulations stated in the protocol.
Quang Ninh draws 170 FDI projects
Investors from 20 countries and territories across the globe have registered more than 11.57 billion USD in 170 foreign direct investment (FDI) in the northern coastal province of Quang Ninh so far, according to the Vietnam News Agency.
Hong Kong (China) is the largest source of the capital with 3.81 billion USD funneled in 49 projects, followed by Japan (over 2.34 billion USD) and the US (2.31 billion USD).
Last year, the province granted new investment licenses to 25 projects worth 3.13 billion USD, and approved additional capital of 28.86 million USD for three others.
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| Quang Ninh has been an attractive destination for FDI. (Photo: VNA) |
The province has been an attractive destination for foreign investors thanks to its efforts to promote administrative reform and build a transparent business climate, helping win confidence from the business community.
Since 2013, the province has topped the Vietnam’s Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI) which measures the quality of economic management, the level of convenience and friendliness of the business environment, and administrative reform efforts by the provincial administration.
According to Director of the Quang Ninh Economic Zone Authority Hoang Trung Kien, the FDI projects are all in line with the province’s planning and development orientation, making contributions to shaping up hi-tech industries, manufacturing engineering, and component assembly, among others.
Quang Ninh holds huge potential to lure more foreign investors as the Quang Yen coastal economic zone now has more than 9,700 hectares of clean land.
Targeting at least 3 billion USD in FDI capital in 2024, the province will continue implementing its decree on fast and sustainable development of processing and manufacturing sector during the 2020-2025 period with a vision to 2030.
Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Cao Tuong Huy said Quang Ninh will roll out red carpets for enterprises who land investment in the areas of local strengths and potential such as tourism, processing and manufacturing industries, supporting industry, marine economy, logistics, and eco-agriculture.
Besides, it will sharpen focus on luring prestigious groups with financial strength, modern management, and long-term and stable investment that are able to create high added values at local industrial parks and economic zones, especially those with uniform infrastructure, he said.
Quang Ninh will continue working to create the best conditions for enterprises, and considering incentives to lure further investments.
Currently, it is ramping up efforts to complete a set of criteria to evaluate and choose foreign investments, with priority given to hi-tech projects, environmentally friendly ones, and those that can contribute greatly to the local budget.
Petrol prices revised up on January 11
Retail prices of petrol were revised up in the latest adjustment on January 11 by the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Ministry of Finance, said the Vietnam News Agency.
The prices of E5 RON92 and RON 95-III increased by 35 VND and 19 VND to no more than 22,041 VND (0.9 USD) and 21,935 VND per litre, respectively.
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| At a petrol station in Hanoi (Photo: VNA) |
Meanwhile, the costs of diesel and kerosene were capped at 19,707 VND and 20,331 VND per litre, rising by 339 VND and 374 VND, respectively. Mazut oil was sold for a maximum of 15,815 VND per kg, up 320 VND.
The two ministries decided to use the petrol and oil price stabilisation fund for mazut oil, at 300 VND per kilogramme, the same as the previous adjustment.
Coffee prices hit record high in early January 2024
Coffee farmers are advised to cash in on export shipments as coffee prices are on the rise in the global market, Radio the Voice of Vietnam reported.
The Vietnamese coffee industry is expected to continue to benefit this year from a limited supply and high prices globally.
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| A cup of hot coffee (Photo: giaoducthoidai.vn) |
The price of Robusta coffee on ICE Europe - London continued to increase for a fifth session in a row, up US$18 to reach US$2,950 per tonne in March delivery term and up by US$15 to US$2,845 950 per tonne in the May delivery term.
Meanwhile, the price of Arabica coffee on ICE US - New York is on the downward trend, down 2.95 cent to 181.15 cent per lb in the March delivery term and down 3.10 cent to 178.95 cent per lb in the May delivery term.
The increase in the Robusta coffee price in consecutive sessions comes amid concerns about a limited supply from Asia and the prolonged blockage of the Europe-Asia shipping route through the Suez Canal.
The Vietnam Coffee and Cocoa Association estimated that the Vietnamese coffee output in the 2023 - 2024 crop would drop to 1.6 - 1.7 million tonnes, lower than the 1.78 million tonnes of the previous crop.
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| Coffee prices hit record high in early January 2024 – Photo for illustration (Source: baobinhthuan.com.vn) |
The price of Vietnamese coffee in major coffee growing areas such as Lam Dong, Dak Lak, Dak Nong, Gia Lai, and Kon Tum rose to VND71,000 (roughly US$2.9) per kilo on January 11, beating the all-time high of VND70,000 per kilo last summer.
It is forecasted that the Vietnamese coffee industry will continue to benefit this year thanks to the high prices of Robusta coffee.
In 2023, Vietnam shipped 1.62 million tonnes of coffee abroad, earning US$4.24 billion, down 8.7% in volume but up 4.6% in value year on year./.