Vietnam exported nearly 2.3 billion U. S. dollars worth of farm and forest products in the first four months of this year, a year-on-year rise of 25 percent, according to a local trade agency on Friday.

In April alone, the country earned over 397 million dollars from shipping farm produces abroad, and roughly 182 million dollars from forest products, said the Trade Information Center under the Trade Ministry.

Between January and April, items recording high export growth included rubber, up 116 percent to 349 million dollars; pepper, up 52 percent to 67 million dollars, and woodwork, up 31.9 percent to 656 million dollars.

In the period, some products saw decreases in export value, including rice which saw decrease of 9 percent to 466 million dollars, and cashew nuts, down 5.9 percent to 131 million dollars.

To export more farm and forest products, Vietnam is focusing on building brands, registering product trademarks, improving quality, exploiting traditional markets as China, the United States, Japan, and the European Union, while seeking new ones.

Vietnam has targeted to export over 7.3 billion dollars worth of agriculture, forestry and fishery products in 2006, up from nearly 6.9 billion dollars in 2005, the center said.

Source: Xinhua