HO CHI MINH CITY, July 22 (Xinhua) -- In the first half of this year, 254.8 million tons of cargoes were handled via Vietnam's seaports, up 17 percent on-year, according to the Vietnam Maritime Administration on Sunday.

Specifically, Vietnamese container ships carried 69.9 million tons of cargoes, up 9 percent. Foreign fleets currently hold a lion's share for the local maritime cargo shipping market.

The Vietnamese fleet has a modest market share mainly due to lack of container ships capable of making long journeys, such as those to the United States, Europe and Africa, as well as lack of a strong logistics system, said local experts.

Only 0.4 percent of nearly 297,000 logistics firms in Vietnam are maritime logistics service providers, said the administration under the Transport Ministry.