Statistics of the Vietnam Pepper and Spice Association (VPSA) show that in June 2024, Vietnam exported 28,162 tons of pepper of all kinds, down 10.2% in volume but slightly increased by 0.1% in turnover.
In the first half of the year, Vietnam exported 142,586 tons of pepper, down 6.8% in volume but up 30.5% in value. Black pepper exports reached 125,959 tons, and white pepper reached 16,627 tons. Total export turnover was 634.2 million USD.
Vietnam has the “billion-dollar spice” that is extremely popular in the world.
In particular, the average export price of pepper increased by 1,000 USD/ton compared to the same period in 2023. Specifically, the price of black pepper was more than 4,300 USD/ton, and white pepper reached nearly 6,000 USD/ton.
The VPSA reported that in the first half of 2024, the US continued to be the largest pepper export market of Vietnam, with a volume of 37,435 tons. The result was up 44.6% over the same period last year, accounting for 26.3% of the market share. Followed is Germany with 9,526 tons (up 106.7%); the UAE with 8,388 tons (up 15.2%); India with 8,173 tons (up 45.7%); and the Netherlands with 6,019 tons (up 52.1%).
In addition, Vietnam also imported pepper to produce export orders when the domestic supply was low. In the first six months, Vietnam imported 18,002 tons of pepper of all kinds with a total turnover of 69.6 million USD, up 18.9% over the same period last year. The three main suppliers to Vietnam were Brazil with 7,241 tons (down 22.3%), Cambodia with 6,212 tons (up 34.5%), and Indonesia with 2,991 tons (up 67.3%).
In the domestic market, the pepper price is around 147,000–149,000 VND. At the trading session today, the price has decreased by 1,000 VND/kg in Gia Lai but stayed the same as yesterday in DakLak. Meanwhile, in Ba Ria – Vung Tau, and Binh Phuoc, the pepper price is stable at 148,000 VND/kg.
According to an update from the International Pepper Association (IPC) on July 18, the listed price of Lampung black pepper (Indonesia) increased by 0.46% to 7,223 USD per ton. The price of black pepper Brazil ASTA 570 is 7,125 USD per ton and black pepper Kuching (Malaysia) ASTA is 7,500 USD per ton.
The El Nino and declining planting area, along with the inventory from last year to this year in Vietnam, are almost negligible, while the increasing demand in major markets has led to high prices of this commodity in recent times.
The Import-Export Department forecasts that the price of pepper will continue to increase in the coming time, but the growth rate will slow down. However, this is unlikely to prevent pepper from reaching the one billion USD export milestone this year.