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According to preliminary statistics from the General Department of Vietnam Customs, in February 2024, Vietnam imported 932,291 tons of corn, equivalent to over USD 237 million, a decrease of 5% in both quantity and value compared to the previous month. In the first 2 months of the year, corn imports reached USD 487 million with over 1.91 million tons, an increase of 34% in quantity and 2% in value compared to the same period in 2023.
It is worth noting that the imported corn price is decreasing sharply with an average of USD 254/ton, a decrease of 24% compared to the same period last year.
Brazil continues to be the main corn supplier to Vietnam in the first 2 months of 2024 with 1.18 million tons, equivalent to over USD 304 million, an increase of 43% in quantity and 11% in value.
The second largest market is Argentina, in the first 2 months of 2024 reached 330,315 tons, equivalent to USD 82.72 million, an increase of 18.8% in quantity, but a decrease of 11.3% in value compared to the first 2 months of 2023.
It is noteworthy that Laos has emerged as the third largest supplier of corn to Vietnam with the output in the first 2 months of the year equal to half of 2023 combined. Specifically, Vietnam imported 48,336 tons of corn from Laos in the first 2 months of the year, equivalent to USD 12.39 million, an increase of 9% in quantity and a decrease of 20% in value.
The import price reaches an average of USD 256, a decrease of 26% compared to the same period.
Source: GDC
According to Statista, Vietnam is one of the top 30 largest maize producing countries in the world but at the same time is one of the largest maize-importing countries in the world, ranking behind China, Europe, Mexico, Japan, South Korea, and Egypt.
Data from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) shows that Laos’ maize production reached 510,000 tons in the 2022-2023 crop year. On average, in the 5-year period from 2018 to 2022, Laos’ maize production reached 597,000 tons.
As for Vietnam, data from the General Statistics Office shows that in 2022, maize production reached 4.41 million tons, a decrease of 0.8% compared to the previous year. Therefore, if compared to 2022, Vietnam’s maize production is 8.5 times higher than the Laotian market. In 2023, the production of food grains with seeds reached 47.9 million tons, an increase of 790,000 tons compared to 2022, of which maize production reached 4.4 million tons, a decrease of 4.7 thousand tons.
Maize, especially sweet corn, is a major agricultural commodity in Laos, second only to rice, especially in Xayaboury province in northern Laos. Farmers in Xayaboury currently sell 70% of their maize production to China, Thailand, and Vietnam, while the remaining portion is supplied to the domestic market.
The provincial government of Xayaboury has encouraged farmers to produce 300,000 tons of sweet corn for export in recent years, but this number has now decreased. Previously, finished sweet corn brought significant income to farmers and contributed to the economic development of both the local area and the whole country.
According to the latest forecast by the USDA, global maize production in the new 2023/24 season is expected to reach 1,222.8 million tons, an increase of 6.3% compared to the 2022/23 season (1,150.7 million tons).
World maize exports are expected to increase by 12%, from 176.6 million tons in the 2022/23 season to 197.8 million tons in the new season. The United States is the second largest exporter, reaching 53.3 million tons, an increase of 21.7% compared to the same period last year.
