The first two months of 2012 witnessed a sharp year-on-year increase in exports of rubber products. However, statistics have shown that rubber exports remain dependent on a limited number of key markets.

Total revenue of the sector in the period jumped 55.2 per cent over the same period last year to $56.8 million.

According to the General Department of Customs, top markets of Vietnamese rubber include China , Japan , the US , and the Republic of Korea , beside some minor markets such as Cambodia , Taiwan , Malaysia , Indonesia , Hong Kong and India .

As the largest consumer of Vietnamese rubber, China bought more than $5 million worth of rubber products from Vietnam in January and $7.7 million in February, year-on-year increases of 26.6 per cent and 21.8 per cent, respectively.

With the main mode of export through unofficial trade with small volume, Vietnamese rubber enterprises have remained in a passive situation when they have had to depend on the border trading policies of China , their key market.

Orders from large Chinese rubber firms reduced after the lunar New Year (Tet) holiday, and Vietnam ’s rubber latex exports fell by 6 per cent year-on-year in the first two months of 2012.

The Vietnamese rubber sector has set a target of planting one million hectares of rubber trees and earning $5 billion from exports by 2015.

The Vietnam Rubber Association has pointed out that in the context where abundant rubber materials have been sold cheaply, in order for rubber enterprises to effectively implement the sector’s strategy, it is essential to step up exports of finished products such as household commodities and industrial products.

Parallel with improving product quality, the sector should also be active in expanding export markets, lessening its dependence on key markets.

The General Department of Customs also reported that Vietnamese rubber has appeared in some new markets such as the UK , Germany and Netherlands . Although the export revenue from these markets is still modest, the markets appear to offer future benefits.