Aquatic product exports rake in 7.24 billion USD in 10 months

Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam exported 7.24 billion USD worth of aquatic products in the past 10 months, up 6.2 percent year-on-year, reported the Agro Processing Market Development Authority (Agrotrade) under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

In October alone, the country’s aquatic product exports raked in 873 million USD, according to Agrotrade.

The US, Japan, China and the Republic of Korea were the fourth biggest importers of Vietnamese aquatic products in the January-September period, accounting for 54.5 percent of the country’s total export value.

Vietnam’s aquatic product export earnings from the British, Thai, Dutch, and Korean markets saw the highest growth, up 20.3 percent, 16.9 percent, 15.8 percent and 13.1 percent respectively.

During the 10-month period, the country imported 1.4 billion USD worth of aquatic products, an annual increase of 21.6 percent. The figure included 141 million USD in October.

Agrotrade said global shrimp prices are showing signs of recovery, pushing up prices in Vietnam. Vietnamese processors have also signed big contracts serving year-end holiday demands.

Vietnam is seeing more opportunities in the US market, which has increased its shrimp purchase in preparation for Christmas since September. The US-China trade war has yet to be cooled down. The US has recently announced lower anti-dumping tariffs on Vietnamese shrimp and tra fish imports. To meet domestic demand, China also reduced its tariffs on aquatic product imports from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, of which Vietnam is a member.   

The prices of Vietnamese shrimp and Tra fish is projected to go up in line with higher export demands during the year-end period.-VNA