According to a report from the Vietnamese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the country exported eight million tonnes of rice, earning USD4.78 billion last year, an increase of 38.40 percent against 2022's figures.
Rice export revenues ranked third after timber and seafood products, the report said.
The country also enjoyed the highest prices among major rice exporters at USD663 per tonne. Some of the country's big markets all increased their import volumes.
The Philippines continued to be Vietnam's largest rice buyer with values of USD1.75 billion, an increase of 17.40 percent compared to 2022. Indonesia ranked second with export values rising by 992 percent on-year to USD640 million. Rice exports to China also increased by 30.70 percent, earning USD530 million.
Despite being a big rice exporter, Vietnam also spent USD860 million to buy rice for animal food processing in 2023, mostly from Cambodia and India.
The ministry predicts that the global rice market will continue to face short supplies in 2024 and Vietnam's rice can benefit from higher prices, reaching over USD700 per tonne.