Despite the spread of the coronavirus that is disrupting seafood trading globally, Vietnamese shrimp exporter Fimex still saw its exports rise in February.
The company exported 937 metric tons (MT) of shrimp in February, up 24.9 percent from 750 MT in the same month last year. The exports were worth USD 10.7 million (EUR 9.6 million), nearly 29 percent higher year-on-year, latest data from Fimex showed.
It said the increase was partly because there were more working days in February this year than last year. The country’s Lunar New Year holiday in 2020 lasted from 23 to 29 January, while the similar break last year was from 2 to 10 February, 2019.
Also contributing was higher shrimp prices due to limited supply in the market. The last crop had already ended and a new one has just begun, according to Fimex, resulting in a short supply of shrimp.
Despite fear about the coronavirus outbreak that is spreading globally, the company said it has not yet seen an adverse impact to its business operations.
Fimex Chairman Ho Quoc Luc said in a statement posted on the company’s website on 29 February that the company shares its stakeholder’s concerns about the virus. But Fimex confirmed its exposure to the epidemic is limited because China remains its smallest market. Fimex exports its products mostly to European Union, Japan, and the United States.
“Currently no customers from these markets complain about any obstacle in trade,” Luc said.
Its exports to South Korea, a major hotspot of the epidemic outside China, were also stable at around 6 percent of the company’s total exports.
The company, headquartered in the Mekong Delta Province of Soc Trang, sold 14,980 MT of shrimp in 2019, rising 5.7 percent from 2018. Its consolidated sales value last year, however, went down 1.7 percent year-on-year to USD 160.8 million (EUR 144 million).
Luc said Fimex is looking to boost exports to Australia to diversify its export markets.
Photo courtesy of Trieu Tuan/Shutterstock
