In the first half of the year, the export value of agricultural products in Japan increased by 18%

According to the latest data released by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Japan, after experiencing a global economic recession, Japan’s agricultural exports have gradually recovered from the autumn of 2009. In the first half of 2010 (January to June), Japan’s agricultural exports totaled 2401. Billion yen, an increase of 18.2% compared to the same period of last year.

According to the Japan Daily News, under the background of the gradual recovery of the overseas economy centered on Asia, the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries plans to increase the export value of Japanese agricultural products to 1 trillion yen after seven years. However, with the continued appreciation of the yen and the slowdown in the pace of economic recovery in developed countries such as the United States, there is still suspense about whether the export of Japanese agricultural products can maintain a relatively high growth rate.

According to the statistics of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Japan, in the first half of 2010, Japan’s exports of agricultural products to Vietnam were approximately 2.3 times higher than the same period of last year, and exports to China increased by more than 30%. Among all agricultural exports, the proportion of exports to Asia is 70%. Among them, Japan’s exports of high-grade agricultural products have grown significantly. At the same time, exports of processed fish products to the European region have also increased significantly.

Japan's Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said that Japan’s agricultural products are facing trade liberalization and the impact of low-priced imports of agricultural products in the context of the continuous appreciation of the yen. Recently, with the rapid economic growth of emerging market countries, the export of high-quality rice, apples, and eel and barracuda, which are produced in Japan, has continued to increase. In the new economic growth strategy determined by the Japan Cabinet Meeting in 2010, the government finally decided on the goal of “increasing Japan’s agricultural exports to 1 trillion yen by 2017”.

Some analysts also pointed out that the agricultural products exported by Japan are mainly based on high-grade products, and are therefore more susceptible to the economic environment. At the same time, the continued appreciation of the yen and the outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in Miyazaki Prefecture have become the challenges faced by Japanese agricultural exports.