Vietnam: Cassava exports to China are competing strongly with Thailand

Vietnam's cassava and cassava product exports experienced a significant increase in May, with a 10% rise in volume and 20% increase in value compared to the previous month, reaching 220 thousand tons and 89 million USD respectively. The five-month export volume and value also surged by 15.5% and 27.5% year-on-year to 1.4 million tons and 533 million USD. The majority of the cassava chip exports, over 92%, were sent to China, making Vietnam the second-largest supplier after Thailand. Despite this, Vietnam's market share in China's total cassava chip imports has decreased from 17% to 14% between the first four months of the year, as Thailand has grown to hold 73% of the market share. Meanwhile, Vietnam's tapioca starch exports to China have seen a significant drop, from 44% to nearly 15% of the market share, with Thailand taking the lead. Overall, Vietnam's cassava starch exports have slightly decreased, but the dried cassava chip exports have dramatically increased, with a 72.5% rise in volume and a 94.5% rise in value compared to the same period in 2020.