Vietnam exported around 12,000 tonnes of tea worth over US$21 million in the first month of 2024, with Pakistan remaining the largest buyer, according to official figures.

This image shows a worker processing tea for export at a tea business in Vietnam. Photo: M.V. / Tuoi Tre

With these results, the Vietnamese tea sector witnessed a substantial 85 percent year-on-year increase in both the volume and value of tea exports, the General Department of Vietnam Customs reported recently.

In contrast to December, there was a 9.7-percent decrease in quantity and a 10-percent decline in turnover, Bao Cong Thuong (Newspaper of Industry and Trade) under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, reported, citing the general department.

The past month saw Vietnamese tea exported to 16 markets, one less than from the same month last year and three lower than that for the entirety of 2023.

In January, the average tea export price for Vietnam reached $1,694 per tonne, remaining consistent with the same month of the previous year but experiencing a slight three percent decrease compared to the average for the whole of last year, Bao Cong Thuong said.

Higher average prices in the past month were recorded in some markets such as Germany ($7,579 per tonne), Saudi Arabia ($2,546), UAE ($2,192), and Pakistan ($2,013).

Lower average prices were seen in Malaysia ($684 per tonn) and Indonesia ($991).

In January, Pakistan maintained its top position among the key importers of Vietnamese tea, with more than 4,556 tonnes worth nearly $9.2 million, accounting for 36.7 percent of Vietnam’s total tea export volume and 43.7 percent of its overall tea export turnover, customs data showed.

Pakistan was followed by Taiwan, the U.S., and Poland.

Compared to the same month of last year, Pakistan’s imports of tea from Vietnam increased 33 percent in quantity and 52 percent in value.

It is expected that many Vietnamese tea businesses will apply technology to tea production, boost trade promotion, find new markets, and log more turnover in the coming time, contributing to improving the country’s tea export results this year, the Vietnamese Tea Association said.

In 2023, Vietnamese exporters shipped out 121,000 tonnes of tea worth $211 million, down 16.9 percent in volume and 10.9 percent in value year on year, respectively, according to the General Department of Vietnam Customs.

Last year saw the country’s tea export volume drop to the lowest level in seven years, the agency said.

Vinh Tho (Source: tuoitrenews.vn)