The reopening of the Chinese market has created favourable conditions for the Vietnamese seafood industry, with export values up 33% in February to US$122 million.
The total seafood export value in February reached around US$662 million, a slight increase of 4% compared to the same period in 2022.
However this follows a sharp decline in January and overall this year, exports are down 26% at US$1.1 billion compared with the first two months of 2022.
Pangasius exports fell by 38% to US$240 million, shrimp fell by 37% to US$350 million and tuna by 27% to US$113 million. Exports of cephalopod and marine fish tend to be more positive with a growth of 6% each, reaching US$103 million and US$273 million respectively.
The US and EU markets have not shown any sign of recovery in Feburary, with exports falling by 35% and 8% respectively. By the end of February 2023, seafood exports to the US were down 53% to US$164 million and to the EU down 32% to US$123 million.
Seafood exports to Korea, CPTPP countries and some other markets are more positive. South Korea increased by 26% in February, while the CPTPP bloc increased by 14%. However, due to the decrease in January, the results for the first two months of the year were still lower than in the same period.
The Vietnam Association of Seafood Exports and Producers believes the market demand is gradually recovering, especially in China and many small markets. The raw material of aquatic materials (shrimp, pangasius) will also increase in the next month meaning exports in March and April will increase.
