Vietnam to Raise Iron Ore Export Duty in July

Vietnam will raise the export duty on iron ore to 40 percent in early July from 30 percent now to ensure raw material for its domestic steel industry, the government said on May 25, 2011.

The new rate will come into effect on July 2 following a Finance Ministry circular, the government said in a statement.

"The export of iron ore in recent years has led many domestic steel manufacturing enterprises to face shortages of the raw material and forced them to import," the government statement said.

The Vietnam Steel Association and several domestic steel producers had sought a government ban on the export of processed iron ore, the statement said.

Much of Vietnam's exports of raw minerals such as iron ore go to China.

Vietnam had to spend $6.16 billion last year to import steel and steel products, a rise of 15 percent from 2009, government statistics show.

Between January and May this year, the cost of importing the products rose an estimated 15.6 percent from a year earlier to $2.6 billion, the government said on May 25, 2011.