Vietnam’s corn imports soar in nine months

Hanoi, October 24 (VNA) - Vietnam imported over 3.15 million tonnes of corn worth 820.3 million USD in the first nine months of this year, presenting increases of 138.48 percent in volume and 91.48 percent in value over the same period last year. According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s Vietnam Industry and Trade Information Centre (VITIC), Brazil is Vietnam’s biggest corn supplier in the reviewed period, with a total shipment of around 1.58 million tonnes worth nearly 400 million USD, or 18-fold and 15-fold rises, respectively. India ranked second with over 630,000 tonnes worth 154.5 million USD, down by 37.08 percent and 48.51 percent, respectively. Other major corn exporters to Vietnam included Argentina, Thailand, Cambodia, and Laos. The global corn volume traded in 2014 is expected to hit 114 million tonnes. Of the figure, ASEAN countries plan to import 10.9 million tonnes, a rise from 7.3 million tonnes last year.-VNA