Vietnam earned $690.7 million from exporting pepper this year, as of July 15, according to the Vietnam Pepper and Spice Association (VPSA).

Meanwhile, the country imported pepper worth $74.1 million, mainly materials.

As a result, the sector gained a trade surplus of $616.6 million.

During the first six months of the year, Vietnam exported over 142,500 tons of pepper, worth $634.2 million, down 6.8% year-on-year in volume but up 30.5% in value.

The US remained the biggest export market of Vietnamese pepper during the six-month period. Vietnam exported more than 37,400 tons of pepper to this market, up 44.6% compared to the same period last year and accounting for 26.3% of the market share.

It was followed by Germany, UAE, India, China and the Netherlands.