Aquatic product exports rise 14% in five months
Vietnam earned US$790 million from exporting aquatic products in May, lifting the total figure in the first five months of this year to nearly US$3.3 billion, a year-on-year rise of 14%.
According to the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), after a 23% increase in April, shrimp exports continued to maintain a growth rate of 25% in May with turnover reaching US$375 million.
By the end of May, Vietnam's shrimp exports had raked in US$1.34 billion, up 14% over the same period last year.
Tra fish (pangasius) exports also witnessed a higher-than-expected recovery with growth of 26%, valued at US$134 million. Pangasius export turnover in the first five months of the year reached US$623 million, an increase of 12% year-on-year.
Seafood exports still achieved a strong growth rate of 14.5% over the same period last year, reaching a turnover of US$1.3 billion in the first five months of this year.
Among them, tuna exports reached US$292 million, up 21% over last year’s figure.
Especially, in April and May, tuna exports achieved an impressive increase, 1.5 times higher than the same period last year. This is a positive signal for exports in the coming months.
Export of squid and octopus also recovered positively, up 11% to US$212 million.
According to the VASEP, the current supply of aquatic materials for processing is stable, especially for shrimp and pangasius products while seafood materials is more difficult due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, the main factor determining the recovery of Vietnam's seafood exports in the current period is the market.
The US, EU and member countries of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) are the markets that play a dominant role in the growth of Vietnam's seafood exports.
The strong rises in March and April have helped lift the total export value of the products to the US in the first four months of this year to US$483 million, up 28% compared with the same period last year, VACEP said.
In addition to shrimp, tuna is expected to have an opportunity to export rapidly to the US market.
The European market is also expected an ideal destination of Vietnamese seafood exporters. Although the economic recovery of this market sector is slower than that of the US, consumption demand is recovering when the COVID-19 pandemic is gradually controlled.
Vietnam's aquatic product export turnover to the EU in May reached nearly US$95 million, up 30% compared to the same period last year.
Accumulated exports to the EU reached over US$380 million in the first five months of this year, a year-on-year increase of 15%.
Shrimp still the main products with nearly US$199 million, up 22% over the same period last year. While the export of shrimp and seafood products to the EU has a positive trend, pangasius exports to the EU have not shown any signs of recovery, continuing to decline by over 25% against last year.