Vietnam has received approval from the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) to export 24,000 crocodiles this year, 9,000 more than last year, according to Nguyen Dinh Chuong, head of Ho Chi Minh City’s Forest Protection Department.

Five enterprises, four of them in HCM City, are currently registered to export 19,000 crocodiles. They include Ton Phat Co Ltd., Saigon Forestry Co., and Cuoi Tien Tourism Co.

Meanwhile, the price of crocodiles dropped to VND80 million per tonne, marking a year-on-year decline of 40 percent.