Vietnam Food Association said that Vietnam has so far this year exported 1.82 million tons of rice, bringing in export turnover of 736.66 million U.S. dollars, up 70 percent in volume and 80 percent in value against the same period last year, said the information center of Vietnam's Ministry of Industry and Trade on Monday.

With such increase in rice export, Vietnam's Ministry of Agricultural and Rural Development (MARD) forecast the country would export 4.5 to 5 million tons of rice this year.

Vietnam's rice export ship is likely to enjoy the sea- breeze to move farther this year because the global rice prices are raising slightly in recent days, said MARD.

In April, Vietnam's rice was traded at 460 U.S. dollars a ton for a five percent broken rice and 400 U.S. dollars a ton for 25 percent broken rice, up 5 to 20 U.S. dollars against last month, said MARD.

So far this year, the local rice exporters have signed contracts to export 3.65 million tons of rice which will be delivered in the first half of this year, said the association.

Regarding to the rice production and harvest this year, Director of the Cultivation Department of MARD, Nguyen Tri Ngoc, said that the country expects to yield 38 million tons of rice harvest.