Vietnam exported nearly 4.8 billion U. S. dollars worth of farm, forest and fishery products in the first half of this year, a year-on-year rise of over 31 percent, according to a local trade agency on Monday.

Between January and June, items recording high export growth included rubber, up 109.6 percent to 486 million dollars; pepper, up 44 percent to 108 million dollars; coffee, up 31.1 percent to 602 million dollars; woodwork, up 25.8 percent to 922 million dollars; and seafood up 25.7 percent to over 1.4 billion dollars, said the Trade Information Center under the Trade Ministry.

To export more farm and forest products, Vietnam is focusing on building brands, registering product trademarks, improving quality, exploiting traditional markets such 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