Vietnam is likely to enjoy low labour costs for the rest of this decade. Fortunately, the cost of basic living essentials is still fairly low. Rice exports have risen sharply since 1989 as a result of policy changes and reached nearly 2 million tons during 1992. This has brought Vietnam up to third place in the list of rice exporting countries. The indications are that in a few years Vietnam will be challenging both Thailand and the United States as the leading rice exporting country.
Rice accounts for about two-thirds of the sown area.
The most important industrial commodities are peanuts, cashew nuts, coffee, tea, rubber and sugar cane. Marine resources are substantial. Some 2,000 species of fish are to be found in inland waters and along the coast, including 70 species of shrimp and 50 species of crab. Natural resources, including oil and gas, coal, bauxite, iron ore as well as other precious and semiprecious metals exist in abundance. Oil production is expected to reach 7 million tons of crude by 1995 and 20 million by the year 2000.