HANOI: Vietnamese authorities have seised 446 kilogrammes (981 pounds) of ivory illegally shipped from Nigeria after finding 3.5 tons at the same port last month, an official said Wednesday.

The ivory seised Tuesday had been hidden in timber in a container at Cat Lai port in the southern commercial hub of Ho Chi Minh City, Customs official Le Dinh Loi said.

Authorities seised 3.5 tons of ivory in three shipments smuggled from Africa at the same port last month.

State media say 1 ton of ivory costs $1.8 million on the black market.

Vietnam will host an international conference on illegal wildlife trade in Hanoi later this month that is expected to be attended by Britain's Prince William, a vocal critic of the trade.

Elephant ivory is used as jewelry and home decorations in Vietnam, which bans hunting of its own dwindling population of elephants.