Vietnam earned less value from exports of shrimp and pangasius in October on a year-on-year basis but saw a jump in sales of tuna, according to the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP).
The country exported seafood products worth USD 875.4 million (EUR 791.3 million) in the month, down 0.5 percent from the same month last year. Of the total, the export value of shrimp accounted for USD 346 million (EUR 312.8 million), edging down 0.6 percent. Whiteleg shrimp comprised USD 253 million (EUR 228.7 million) of that total, up 2.4 percent, and giant tiger shrimp was USD 70.5 million (EUR 63.7 million) of the total, down 7.5 percent. The decline in shrimp exports was slower in October than previous months thanks to a recovery in demand ahead of year-end festivals from major markets, particularly from China, VASEP said.
The export value of pangasius fell 11 percent year-on-year to USD 201.5 million (EUR 182.2 million) in October. Despite a surge in demand from China, exports to the United States continued to slump as a high antidumping duty has discouraged exporters from shippping products to this market, the trade group said.
The U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) said last month that the U.S. will remove the antidumping duty imposed on pangasius products from Vietnam in its preliminary review of the 15th period review (POR15) for the period from August 1, 2017 to July 31, 2018.
VASEP said it hopes the same results will be announced in the final review, expected in February 2020, so exports of pangasius from Vietnam to the U.S. will rebound.
On 1 November, U.S. Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) of the United States Department of Agriculture announced that Vietnam, Thailand, China are eligible to export Siluriformes fish, including pangasius and basa, to the U.S. VASEP said this is a good opportunity for more companies from Vietnam to ship pangasius to the U.S.
Vietnam exported wild-caught seafood products worth USD 328 million (EUR 296.5 million) in October, up more than 7 percent year-on-year. Of the total, the export value of tuna was USD 70.87 million (EUR 64.1 million), rising 5.9 percent, while the sales of squid and octopus decreased 24.3 percent to USD 51.73 million (EUR 46.8 million).
Vietnam’s export value of seafood products during January-October was USD 7.13 billion (EUR 6.44 billion), down 1.5 percent from 2018, comprising USD 2.78 billion (EUR 2.51 billion) from shrimp, down 6.4 percent year-on-year; USD 1.66 billion (EUR 150 million) from pangasius, down 8.8 percent; USD 617.79 million (EUR 558.5 million) from tuna, rising 14.2 percent; and USD 479.9 million (EUR 433.8 million) from squid and octopus, 11.9 percent lower year-on-year.
VASEP estimates that Vietnam is likely to export seafood products worth USD 8.69 billion (EUR 7.86 billion) this year, down 1.2 percent year-on-year.
Photo by Jack Suvarnabhumi/Shutterstock
