Tuna exports from Vietnam achieved a total value of USD 376 million (EUR 315.6 million) in the first eight months of this year, an increase of 21 percent compared to the corresponding period of 2016, with increased sales to most of the sector’s main markets.
According to the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), the United States continued to be Vietnam's leading tuna buyer, purchasing USD 148 million (EUR 124.2 million) worth of products in the January through August period, an increase of 15.5 percent year-on-year. The E.U. followed with USD 81 million (EUR 68 million) worth of tuna, up 27 percent. Of the bloc’s three largest Vietnamese tuna buyers, exports to Germany and Spain increased by 40 percent and 166 percent respectively, while sales to Italy fell 25 percent.
Israel overtook the ASEAN region to become the third largest buyer of Vietnamese tuna with USD 32 million (EUR 26.9 million), up 138 percent year-on-year. VASEP said that this year, Israel has increased its imports of canned tuna from Vietnam, while in 2016 it sourced larger volumes of the Southeast Asian country’s fresh, frozen and dried tuna.
So far this year, Vietnam has been the second largest supplier of canned tuna to Israel behind Thailand. And with virtually no competitors, Vietnam is the leading supplier of frozen tuna to the market.
Meanwhile, Vietnam’s tuna exports to ASEAN countries in the first eight months of 2017 fell 13.2 percent to USD 25.6 million (EUR 21.5 million).
In terms of products, frozen tuna fillets/loins accounted for 48 percent of Vietnam's total tuna exports, followed by canned tuna (30 percent) and other processed tuna (14 percent).
Showing stronger growth, Vietnam’s cephalopod exports for the same period totaled USD 402 million (EUR 337.4 million), up 55 percent year-on-year, with squid accounting for 59 percent of the value.
South Korea has been Vietnam’s No. 1 market for cephalopods this year, buying in USD 136 million (EUR 114.2 million) worth of products in the first eight months, representing an increase of 40 percent year-on-year.
Japan ranked second with USD 94 million (EUR 78.9 million) of cephalopod imports, a rise of 43 percent, followed by the EU with USD 73 million (EUR 61.3 million) – up 94 percent, and then ASEAN countries with USD 46 million (EUR 38.6 million) – up 44 percent.
VASEP highlighted that future global cephalopod production is forecast to remain low, which should drive prices up.
