Vietnam’s seafood sales have continued to drop this year compared to 2022 due to low global demand, but the decline is showing signs of letting up, especially as seasonal festivals in the country – which often involve high levels of seafood trade – draw near.
Vietnam’s total seafood exports in August totaled USD 858.8 million (EUR 805.8 million), down 13 percent year over year, but the smallest monthly drop since March. August was also the third month in a row the total value of Vietnam’s seafood exports increased.
Year-over-year sales to the U.S. – Vietnam’s top export market – grew for the first time this year in August, reaching USD 165.2 million (EUR 155 million), up 5.2 percent. Sales to three other major markets rose, including Australia at USD 28.2 million (EUR 26.4 million), up 2.9 percent year over year; Italy at USD 11.9 million (EUR 11 million), rising 35.2 percent year over year; and the Philippines at USD 10.6 million (EUR 9.9 million), up 40.8 percent from August 2022.
However, exports to mainland China – the second-largest market for Vietnamese seafood products – fell in August to USD 124.7 million (EUR 117 million), down 6.5 percent year over year. That value was higher, though, than July’s sales, which totaled USD 115.2 million (EUR 108 million).
Signaling a continuance of the positive momentum, Vo Thi Tuong Oanh, Siam Canadian’s sales director for Vietnam, confirmed that shrimp exports rose slightly between August and the first half of September, driven by retail chains increasing orders to meet higher demand associated with year-end seasonal festivals.
“We can see an upward trend at this moment, but the growth is not remarkable,” Oanh said. “It is true that the sales are still much lower than the same period last year.”
Minh Phu CEO Le Van Quang told SeafoodSource his company’s shrimp exports have increased slightly, improving since late July, though the levels of growth remained modest. Quang said at an annual stakeholders meeting in June that his company’s financial situation in Q3 2023 is expected to be brighter after falling sales in the second quarter.
Fimex (Sao Ta) reported a 5 percent increase in the output of processed products to 1,981 metric tons (MT) in August. The company also sold 2,008 MT of shrimp in the same month, a 15 percent year-over-year increase. However, its sales value in August only saw a slight uptick to USD 22.4 million (EUR 21 million), up from USD 22.1 million (EUR 20.7 million) in August 2022, primarily due to lower export prices.
Fimex Chairman Ho Quoc Luc said in a statement his company has achieved notable increases in sales over the last two months, and it’s likelier monthly sales declines will be turned into increases by the end of the year.
Vietnam’s leading pangasius exporter, Vinh Hoan, reported total sales of VND 865 billion (USD 35.8 million, EUR 33.6 million) in July, down 28 percent year over year but up 2 percent from June, and sales to Europe and China increased 22 percent and 13 percent, respectively.
Despite a decline in sales to the U.S. – its largest export market – Vinh Hoan said it still believes pangasius exports will rebound due to the exhaustion of U.S. inventories and the competitive pricing advantages of Vietnam’s pangasius products against alternatives.
Vinh Hoan and fellow pangasius exporter Caseamex were mandatory respondents in the U.S. Department of Commerce’s (DOC) 19th period review from 1 August, 2021, through 31 July, 2022. The preliminary results from the review resolved that Vinh Hoan will continue to enjoy zero antidumping duties for its exports to the U.S., while exports from Caseamex and other companies will face a USD 0.14 (EUR 0.13) tax per kilogram. If the DOC upholds this rate in its final decision, it will result in a significantly lower rate than the one applied in the 18th period review.
In a separate development, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) conducted an on-site audit in Vietnam from 7 to 22 August. FSIS inspectors worked with three regional units under Vietnam’s Agro-Processing and Market Development Authority and six pangasius farming facilities in the Mekong Delta to evaluate the food hygiene and safety control systems in place for pangasius exported to the U.S. Inspectors found only a few minor issues, which were quickly addressed, according to the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP).
VASEP said trading conditions were improving the prospects of the country’s seafood trading, underpinned by a recent improvement in Vietnam-U.S. relations. On 10 September, the two nations signed a comprehensive strategic partnership that VASEP said contribute to a potential boost in seafood exports, including pangasius, from Vietnam to the U.S.
TG Fishery Deputy General Manager Ong Hang Van, however, expressed a less optimistic view regarding the outlook for the industry during a seminar at the 2023 Vietfish Exhibition, positing that difficulties within the pangasius sector are likely to persist into next year. Currently, Vietnamese pangasius companies are grappling with several operational challenges, including rising domestic stockpiles and production costs amid declining exports. Van said most Vietnamese pangasius farmers have not cut back on production and that profit margins are shrinking as a result. Pangasius farmers that normally harvest at a size ranging from 0.9 to 1 kilogram per fish are now waiting to harvest until fish reach 1.5 kilograms, leading to higher feeding costs, exacerbating financial strains facing the sector.
Photo courtesy for the Center for Responsible Seafood
