Vietnamese wood pellet exports rose on the year in January, because of more demand from South Korea and Japan.
Vietnam exported 596,000t of wood pellets in January, up by 17pc from the previous year's 507,000t, but fell by 7.3pc from a month earlier, according to customs data.
The year-on-year increase in exports was because of strong demand for pellets from South Korean end-users, following a change in state subsidies for biomass-fired generators. Higher buying interest from Japan, given new biomass power plants starting up or coming on line in early 2025, also contributed to the rise in exports.
The month-on-month decrease in exports was because of a lack of trading activity during Vietnam's nine-day Tet holiday from 25 January to 2 February.
Vietnamese wood pellet shipments to Japan stood at 385,000t in January, up by 72pc from a year earlier, but down by 10pc from December 2024. It accounted for 65pc of the country's wood pellet exports in January.
South Korea was Vietnam's second-largest buyer of wood pellets, accounting for 28pc of the country's wood pellet exports in January. Vietnam exported 166,000t to South Korea in January, up by 1.5pc from a year earlier, but down by 18pc from December 2024.
There were 31,800t of wood pellets exported to France in January, down by 49pc from a year earlier, with no volumes shipped in December.
| Vietnam's wood pellet exports in January 2025 | t | ||
| Quantity | on month (%) | on year (%) | |
| Japan | 385,335 | -10.1 | 72.1 |
| South Korea | 166,187 | -17.5 | 1.5 |
| France | 31,750 | N/A | -48.9 |
| Total | 595,956 | -7.3 | 17.4 |
| Source: Customs data | |||
