Analyzing the Impact of Esg Factors on Vietnam's Agricultural Exports

This study examines the impact of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) factors on Vietnam’s agricultural exports within the framework of the gravity model of international trade. Using panel data covering 950 observations across trading partners over the study period, the research evaluates both the composite ESG index and its individual pillars (E, S, and G) to capture their effects on export performance.The empirical results indicate that the overall ESG index has a positive and statistically significant effect on Vietnam’s agricultural exports, suggesting that higher ESG standards in importing countries are associated with increased export flows. Among the three pillars, the environmental factor exhibits the strongest influence, reflecting the growing importance of environmental standards in agricultural trade. In contrast, the social and governance dimensions show positive but statistically insignificanteffects when examined separately.Further analysis reveals that the impact of ESG is more pronounced in markets with higher sustainability standards, such as the European Union, highlighting the role of ESG as both a market access requirement and a competitive advantage. Control variables,including economic size, distance, and logistics performance, behave consistently with the traditional gravity model, while free trade agreements do not show a significant effect.The findings contribute to the literature by providing empirical evidence on the role of ESG in shaping agricultural export performance in a developing country context. From a policy perspective, the study suggests that enhancing ESG practices can help Vietnam strengthen its position in global agricultural markets and better comply with increasingly stringent international standards.