Yangon--Till 24 January of the current fiscal 2019-2020, Myanmar’s export earnings reached 5.717 billion US dollars, up 1.44 billion US dollars compared with the same period last year, according to the Ministry of Commerce.

During the same period last year, the export earnings amounted to 4.573 billion US dollars.

Myanmar’s major export items are: agro, animal, marine, mining, forest and CMP products and other goods.

In a bid to lower the budget deficit and develop the export sector, the ministry is working on the National Export Strategy (NES), the relaxations of procedures, encouragements to the private sector and the export of value-added products and helping local entrepreneurs enjoy tax reliefs like GSP for the extension of export markets.

In 2018-2019 FY, the total trade value reached 34.979 billion US dollars, up over 3.8 billion US dollars of its target, according to the Commerce Ministry.

In 2019-2020 FY, the total trade value is expected to hit 34 billion US dollars and the export sector, 18 billion US dollars, said Dr. Than Myint, Union Minister for Commerce.