Vietnam exported 710,000 tons of rice worth 229 million U.S. dollars in the first quarter of this year, posting respective year-on-year declines of 43.3 percent and 33.2 percent, according to the country's General Statistics Office.

The rice were mostly exported to the Philippines, Cuba, Indonesia, Malaysia and Japan.

Vietnam is predicted to ship 150,000-170,000 tons of rice to Japan in 2007, up from 130,000 tons in 2006, some 120,000 tons in 2005 and 80,000 tones in 2004.

Among nearly 100 rice export markets of Vietnam which purchased over 4.7 million tons of the local commodity totaling 1.3 billion dollars last year, the Philippines, Malaysia and Cuba consumed some 60 percent of the total volume.

The Vietnamese government has recently decided that the rice export volume should be 4-4.5 million tons in 2007 to ensure food security.

Source: Xinhua