Seafood growth to bounce back in mid-year
(VOV) - Since early this year, shrimp exports have dipped sharply and just reached nearly US$800 million in the first quarter, a fall of 28% against last year’s same period.
Traditional markets like the US, Japan and the EU all saw a drastic decline. However, it is forecast that export growth is likely to bounce back as from mid-year.
This situation can be attributed to the decreasing in shrimp import demands and fluctuation of exchange rates between the US dollar and other currencies.
The average export price dropped from US$12 to US$10 per kilo in February. In Japan, the economic difficulty and the devaluation of the Yen made shrimp imports from Vietnam fall sharply.
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According to Vice President and Secretary General of the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) Nguyen Huu Dung, seafood exports often witness a decline in early months and gradually resume growth as from mid-year, particularly at year end.
Dung added that Vietnamese seafood products are now available in 165 countries and territories. Markets with robust growth for the first quarter included ASEAN and Mexico (more than 30%).
He asked businesses to diversify markets and products to avoid dependence on certain markets.