VIETNAMESE SEAFOOD EXPORTS FORECAST TO EXCEED USD 7B THIS YEAR

VIETNAMESE SEAFOOD EXPORTS FORECAST TO EXCEED USD 7B THIS YEAR

Vietnamese seafood exports are expected to reach USD 7 billion this year, a year-on-year increase of 5.5 per cent, according to the Viet Nam Association of Seafood Producers and Exporters.
Update: (11/8/2016)

"In the early months of the year the seafood sector faced difficulties and challenges. Then a balance in supply and demand in the world market helped the prices of some seafood products recover," pointed out Truong Dinh Hoe, Vasep's general secretary.

In his opinion, thanks to those factors, exports of certain items like shrimp and tra fish have increased this year, though the growth was not high.

The secretary also explained that the country earned USD 5.7 billion from exports in the first 10 months of the year and shipments are expected to increase significantly in the remaining months of the year because demand in the main import markets usually goes up during the year-end festive season.

"We have high expectations for seafood exports in the two remaining months of the year. This will be an encouragement for seafood exporters amid market difficulties as well as a slow recovery in key export markets. This will be a foundation for us to prepare better for 2017," VASEP’s leader pointed out.

Shrimp exports have risen because there has been an increase in demand in key import markets like the US and EU while supply has been down.

In the January - September period sales of the resource abroad were worth nearly USD 2.25 billion, representing a 5.6 per cent year-on-year growth, with the US, EU, China, and South Korea being the largest buyers.

VASEP’s official data revealed that the US remained the country's biggest shrimp importer, accounting for 23.1 per cent of its exports in the first nine months valued at USD 520.2 million, an increase of 15.2 per cent over the same period last year.

Exports to the EU in the period topped USD 431 million, which is a 6.9 per cent increase.

According to the association, the country is expected to earn USD 3.1 billion from shrimp exports this year, a year-on-year increase of 3.3 per cent.

Tra fish was the second largest seafood export item, with exports in the first nine months being worth USD 1.23 billion, which is a 6.2 per cent growth.

Exports of tra to the US saw good growth but exporters encountered difficulties due to anti-dumping duties and that country's catfish inspection programme but exports to China surged by 75.6 per cent, making it Viet Nam's second largest tra buyer.

VASEP forescasts that Vietnam will earn USD 1.66 billion form tra exports this year, a year-on-year increase of 6.4 per cent.

As to tuna, the third largest export earner, its exports reached USD 354.6 million in the first nine months, an increase of 3.8% over the same period last year.

Exports of other kinds of fish were worth USD 816 million, representing an increase of 7.3 per cent, while exports of mollusc (cuttlefish, octopus and bivalve mollusc) decreased 3.4 per cent.

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