Pangasius exports achieved a twofold increase with a revenue of USD 297 million as compared to April of 2021. Thus, the accumulated value in the first four months reached USD 950 million, up 94%.
Seafood exports continue to achieve over USD 1 billion with a sharp growth by 41% as compared to the same period last year. The seafood export value is estimated to reach USD 3.6 billion, 44.5% higher than the same period last year.
The US and China have been the largest importers of Vietnamese seafood with the density accounting for 32% and 24.5% respectively. Both markets saw a three-digit growth in the first four months of the year: China increased by 161% with a worth of USD 306 million, and the US increased by more than 128% with a worth of USD 232 million.
Shrimp exports remained a 35% increase in April, reaching USD 406 million, leading the total export volume of USD 1.36 billion in the first four months, up 41.5% from the same period last year.
Vietnam’s shrimp and pangasius exports sharply increased thanks to high demand and good prices. After two years of poor consumption due to the Covid-19 pandemic, demand has recovered and rose in markets, resulting in short supply and price inflation.
The military strike between Russia and Ukraine has caused difficulties to providers of seafood, especially white fish products. Vietnam’s seafood enterprises grasped good opportunities to boost the exportation and entered into much higher value contracts than in 2021.
Noticeable sales of shrimp, pangasius and other key products were recorded in the US market as compared to previous years, especially pangasius products.
The output of catfish has reduced in the US and the inflation has gone up; thus, the anti-dumping duties have facilitated pangasius enterprises with more and more enterprises being listed as the US’s pangasius providers and the average selling price reaching a new peak. Those factors resulted in a remarkable sales of Vietnamese pangasius to the US in the first four months of the year.
The total export value to the US increased by 79% in April, reaching over USD 266 million. As of the end of April, seafood exports to the US reached USD 842 million, up 74% from the same period last year.
The serious outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic and the zero covid policy in China have put challenges on seafood exportation to this market with lots of ports being closed and strict control of coronavirus over frozen seafood products being executed.
However, as factories in China were forced to close and production has been delayed, this market has been in a lack of seafood for domestic consumption and processing for the export purpose. Thus, China started to increase their purchases of seafood and Vietnam’s enterprises have managed to export seafood to this market despite those challenges.
Seafood exports to China displayed a more than twofold increase in April, reaching USD 216 million, leaving the accumulated value of USD 578 million approximately by April 2022, up 94% from the same period last year. Pangasius alone accounted for 53% of the total seafood export volume to this market.
Exports to the EU, Japan, Korea and other markets showed a double-digit growth in the first four month of the year.
However, the US and China will continue to be the largest destinations which will decide the growth speed of Vietnam’s seafood exports in the next few months. Seafood exports are estimated to reach USD 2.9-3 billion in quarter II, up 36-38% as compared to the same period of 2021.
VFM
