Vietnam upped the value of its tuna exports to the E.U. last year thanks to a new free trade agreement, the EVFTA, Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) said in a statement on 17 February.
The EVFTA entered into force from 1 August, 2020. Sales to the bloc had dropped in the months before it went into effect, but surged beginning in September, with year-on-year growth of 51 percent in September, 27 percent in October, and 25 percent in December.
As a result, the value of the tuna exports from Vietnam to the E.U. rose 2.4 percent to USD 136 million (EUR 112 million) in 2020, despite the declines seen in the first eight months of last year.
Demand for canned tuna across the bloc remained strong last year. In addition, the tax incentives under the EVFTA helped exporters from Vietnam increase shipments of canned tuna products to the E.U., with the export value of code the product code (HS16) rising 15 percent from 2019.
However, in the E.U. market, frozen cooked tuna loins from Vietnam could not compete against similar products with lower prices from China, Mauritius, and the E.U. itself, VASEP said.
Italy, Germany, and Spain were the biggest buyers of tuna from Vietnam within the E.U. In 2020, sales to Italy and Germany grew, but shrank in Spain.
Unlike the E.U., exports of tuna from Vietnam to many other major markets in 2020 declined compared to 2019. The country exported tuna worth USD 649 million (EUR 535 million) last year, 9.8 percent lower year-on-year.
In 2020, the export value of canned tuna increased 19 percent, while sales of frozen fillets fell 25 percent from 2019.
Last month, VASEP said Vietnam's tuna exports are unlikely to recover this year due, mainly to expected lower demand caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Photo courtesy of Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers
