Vietnam's cashew export turnover in December 2025 reached $466 million, a 29% increase compared to the same period last year, according to Vietnam Customs. 

This impressive year-end sprint propelled the country's total export value for 2025 to $5.229 billion—the highest level ever recorded.

Previously, in 2024, Vietnam's cashew exports surpassed the $4 billion mark for the first time, reaching over $4.3 billion. Thus, in just two consecutive years, the cashew industry has set two new milestones, with an increase of nearly $1 billion in just one year.

Beyond value, the sector also set a new volume record in 2025, reaching 766,585 tons, up 5.7% from 2024. This indicates that the industry's growth is driven not only by favorable prices but also by enhanced processing capacity and successful market expansion.

With these results, cashews have emerged as Vietnam’s third-largest agricultural export in 2025, trailing only coffee ($8.57 billion) and fruits and vegetables ($8.56 billion). Amid a sharp decline in rice exports, the breakthrough of cashews further highlights their increasingly important role in the structure of Vietnam’s agricultural exports.

A major highlight of the 2025 export landscape was a significant shift in market dynamics. For the first time in history, China overtook the United States to become the largest consumer of Vietnamese cashews. 

Specifically, exports to China reached $1.115 billion, while the U.S. market accounted for $975 million, followed by the Netherlands in third place with $495 million.

According to the Vietnam Cashew Association (VINACAS), this achievement resulted from a persistent transformation from a focus on social welfare to the development of a multi-billion dollar processing industry. Technological innovation is considered the key factor helping Vietnam maintain its position as the world leader in cashew kernel processing and exports.

Source: VnEconomy