Vietnam’s pepper accounts for 40% of global output and 60% of export output. However, many forecasts show that the output of this “black gold” product in our country will decrease sharply due to the influence of weather factors and decline in growing area.
This year, our country’s pepper output is estimated to only reach 150,000-160,000 tons, down 10-15% compared to the previous crop.
Statistics from the General Department of Customs show that last May, Vietnam exported 30,000 tons of pepper, worth 135 million USD, only a slight increase of 3.7% in volume but a sharp increase of 49.9% in price. value compared to May 2023.
In the first 5 months of 2024, Vietnam’s pepper exports are estimated at 113,000 tons, earning 487 million USD. The amount of pepper exported decreased by 14.1% but the value increased by 19.7% over the same period last year because this product entered a cycle of strong price increases.
Notably, pepper exports to traditional markets increased sharply, especially the German and Korean markets… recording growth of up to 3 digits.
In the first 4 months of this year, countries spent heavily to buy large amounts of Vietnamese pepper. Specifically, the US spent more than 100 million USD to buy 22,700 tons of “black gold” from Vietnam, an increase of 45.7% in volume and 60.1% in value compared to the same period last year. Accordingly, the US continues to maintain its position as the largest customer of Vietnamese pepper.
Exports to Germany boomed when this market purchased more than 5,500 tons of our country’s pepper, with a value of 26.24 million USD, a sudden increase of 108.8% in volume and 147.2% in value compared to the previous year. same period last year.
In addition, the value of pepper exports to Korea, Pakistan, and Russia also recorded impressive increases compared to the same period last year, 176.1%, 108.7% and 121.9% respectively.
The Import-Export Department (Ministry of Industry and Trade) forecasts that pepper prices will continue to increase. There is currently a shortage of pepper supply while demand has recovered strongly from major markets such as Europe, the US and China. This year’s pepper output in Vietnam and many major producing countries is forecast to decline, due to the impact of the El Nino phenomenon and the decline in cultivated area.