Vietnam has gained less value from shrimp exports recently as exporters are grappling with lower prices and increased supply in the international market.
The country shipped shrimp worth USD 275.2 million (EUR 236.7 million) in April, down 0.4 percent year-on-year and 8.3 percent lower than March 2018, the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) said 27 June.
Domestic prices of whiteleg shrimp in Vietnam’s major production region of Mekong Delta started to fall in April on increased global supply and higher inventory in key import markets, VASEP said.
The decrease in the export value in April has actually slowed the increase in the first four months. Vietnam’s shrimp export value rose 14 percent from a year earlier to USD 1 billion (EUR 860.2 million) during January-April, which was lower than the year-on-year hike of 20 percent in the first quarter.
The Southeast Asia nation exported shrimp products worth USD 175.3 million (EUR 150.8 million) to Japan in the first four months, down 9.3 percent year-on-year, as Vietnam met with fierce competition from India, a major competitor of Vietnamese shrimp in the world.
Vietnam’s export value of shrimp to the United States during January-April rose 1.4 percent from a year earlier to USD 160 million (EUR 137.4 million). The modest rise was attributed to the high inventory of shrimp products in the U.S. and the increased exports from India to the U.S.
The exports value to China, a rising market for Vietnamese shrimp, increased just four percent year-on-year in the first four months. In a letter sent to Vietnam’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development on 4 June, VASEP asked the government to closely control the re-exports of shrimp from India and Ecuador to China via Vietnam’s Hai Phong port in northern Vietnam. The move was to further increase shipments of Vietnamese shrimp to China.
VASEP, however, forecast that shrimp prices will increase from August or September 2018 because of expected lower supply from main suppliers. Major harvesting seasons India, Bangladesh, and Thailand are expected to be over in the third and fourth quarters of this year, driving up prices then. In addition, a number of Vietnamese exporters have already secured major agreements to supply shrimp for year-end festivals in many countries.
Photo courtesy of thuysanvietnam.com.vn
