Vietnamese seafood exports see drastic upturn in October

Statistics also indicate that 10-month seafood exports brought back US$8.27 billion, an increase of 11.4% year on year.

Le Hang, director of communications at VASEP, said that amid a strong rebound occurring in demand for seafood imports in key markets, Vietnamese aquatic exports recorded impressive growth in October.

In particular, exports to China and Hong Kong (China) skyrocketed by 37%, thereby affirming its position as the market with the fastest growth rate in the month.

Other markets recorded vibrant growth, including the United States, up 31%; Japan, up 22%; the EU, up 27%; and the Republic of Korea, up 13%.

During the 10-month period, the total value of seafood exports to China, Hong Kong (China), and the US hit US$1.5 billion.

Experts predicted that if the growth momentum of 20% over the past 10 months is maintained, then China and Hong Kong (China) are likely to become the largest importers of Vietnamese seafood by the end of this year.

The VASEP representative pointed out that although the European economy is recovering more slowly compared to the US and China, positive signals from seafood consumption and import prices are gradually growing, thereby opening up bright prospects ahead for Vietnamese businesses.

Exports to the EU from January to October increased by 11% compared to the same period last year, she added.

In contrast, exports to Japan and the Republic of Korea only achieved modest growth of 1.5% to 2% due to factors such as prolonged inflation hitting these two economies.

Meanwhile, shrimp exports brought in more than US$3.2 billion, up 13%, while pangasius exports edged up by 10% to nearly US$1.7 billion.

Most notably, there is good news for the Vietnamese shrimp industry this year as the US Department of Commerce recently announced preliminary countervailing duties on shrimp imported from Ecuador, India, and Vietnam. Accordingly, duty rates for Vietnamese shrimp stood at 2.84%, significantly lower than the 4.36% for India and 7.55% for Ecuador.

Meanwhile, crab and other crustacean exports during the 10-month period fetched US$267 million and US$173 million, marking respective rises of 66% and 58% compared to 2023.

Industry insiders say, with more positive results after the EU's IUU inspection programme scheduled for November, tuna processors are likely to meet this year’s target of earning US$1 billion from export as they did in 2022.