Vietnam increased its exports of tuna products in October, following consecutive declines in August and September, due to the easing of coronavirus-related lockdowns in the country.
According to Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), Vietnam exported USD 73 million (EUR 64.5 million) worth of tuna in October 2021, an increase of 12 percent year-on-year. It had exported USD 51 million (EUR 45 million) worth of tuna in September, and USD 49.4 million (EUR 43.7 million) in August, when the country’s seafood industry was severely impacted a nationwide COVID-19 outbreak.
Sales in the first 10 months of 2021 also rose 9.5 percent year-on-year to USD 594 million (EUR 525 million). Of the total, the export value of fresh and frozen tuna surged 33 percent year-on-year to USD 336 million (EUR 297 million), while sales of processed and canned tuna dropped 11 percent year-on-year to USD 258 million (EUR 228 million).
Between January and October, Vietnam sent its tuna products to 94 markets in the world, down from 108 markets in the same period of 2020.
In October, sales of tuna from Vietnam to Mexico and Israel jumped 446 percent and 358 percent year-on-year, respectively. Exports to China also soared 85 percent to USD 338,000 (EUR 298,800) in the month.
Sales to the U.S. grew in October, helping lift Vietnam’s total tuna export-value to USD 259 million (EUR 229 million) in the first 10 months, up 10 percent year-on-year.
Meanwhile, Vietnam’s sales to the E.U. fell 9.4 percent year-on-year to USD 15.3 million (EUR 13.5 million) in October, the third-consecutive monthly decline. However, thanks to higher sales in H1 2021, the total sales year-to-date through October still rose 5.4 percent to USD 121 million (EUR 107 million).
VASEP said its exports of canned tuna to both the U.S and the E.U. have dropped thus far in 2021 due to high stockpiles in those markets. In addition, high freight rates have made products from Vietnam more expensive than a number of other suppliers’, which negatively affected the competitiveness of Vietnamese tuna products in the U.S. and E.U.
Photo courtesy of Maximillian Cabinet/Shutterstock
