Vietnam saw its export value of shrimp to the United States grow in March, despite facing headwinds due to the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak.
The Southeast Asian nation exported shrimp worth USD 41.3 million (EUR 38 million), up 11.5 percent from the same month last year, the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) said in a statement on Tuesday, 21 April.
The export value in the first quarter also rose 18.2 percent year-on-year to USD 115.5 million (EUR 106 million).
COVID-19 spread rapidly in the U.S. in March, causing difficulties for imports of shrimp into the country. Despite a drop in shrimp supply for foodservice, demand from the retail sector still surged in the month, VASEP said.
The trade group urged local exporters to focus more on supply of deeply processed and highly value-added products to meet demand of consumers under lockdown in the U.S.
Vietnam has benefitted as India, the world’s top shrimp producer and a major competitor of Vietnam in the U.S. market, was not able to ship cargoes as normal, as the country was under lockdown from 24 March to 3 May, which negatively affected its shrimp sector, hindering its export capacity, according to VASEP.
Vietnam began to impose social distancing measures in April to contain the spread of the COVID-19, but these did not include restrictions on shrimp-trading activities, as India’s did.
As of 21 April, Vietnam had 268 confirmed COVID-19 cases with no deaths, while India had 18,600 cases and 590 deaths, according to media reports from the two countries.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which tracks shrimp imports in to the United States, has not yet reported the country’s March totals, which would reveal the veracity of VASEP’s prediction that India’s shrimp exports to the U.S. fell last month.
Exports of shrimp from Vietnam to Japan went up 8.4 percent year-on-year to USD 132 million (EUR 121.5 million) in the first quarter, making the East Asian nation the largest buyer of shrimp from Vietnam.
Separately, shipments to the European Union fell 16 percent year-on-year in value, while exports to South Korea and China declined 6.3 percent and 6.4 percent, respectively.
In total, Vietnam exported shrimp worth USD 628.6 million (EUR 578.5 million) in the first three months, edging up 1.8 percent from a year ago, VASEP said.
Photo courtesy of VASEP
