(seafood.vasep.com.vn) In the first eight months of 2019, Vietnamese fish paste and surimi exports reached US $ 213.5 million, up 13.3% over the same period in 2019. Particularly in August 2019, export of this item reached nearly US$31 million, up 0.6%.
In August 2019, Vietnamese fish paste and surimi exports to three main importers (ASEAN, Korea, Japan) all decreased while exports to China, Russia and the EU went up. However, thanks to the growth in the previous months, export of fish paste and surimi in the first 8 months of 2019 to the main markets has maintained a positive growth.
ASEAN was Vietnam's leading importer for fish paste and surimi in the first eight months of 2019. Exports to this market reached US$62.9 million, up 1.8% over the same period in 2018. Vietnamese fish paste and surimi exports to ASEAN have tended to decrease from the second quarter of this year.
Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore were the main importers of Vietnamese surimi in ASEAN. In the first eight months of 2019, exports to Malaysia climbed while exports to Thailand and Singapore declined. Vietnam was still the main supplier of fish paste and surimi for the ASEAN market.
Vietnamese fish paste and surimi exports to the second largest importer - South Korea, reached US$8.9 million, down 22.9%. In the first eight months of 2019, exports of this item to Korea reached US$62 million, up 0.9% over the same period in 2018. Vietnam was still the largest supplier of surimi and fish paste for Korean market.
Vietnamese fish paste and surimi exports to Japan were similar to the trends of ASEAN and Korean markets. In August 2019, Vietnam's exports to Japan reached US $ 2.9 million, down 19.4%. In the first eight months of 2018, exports to this market increased by only 1.8% to reach US$24.5 million.
Vietnam was the fifth largest supplier of fish paste and surimi for Japan, after Thailand, Norway, India and China.
Vietnam surimi exports to the EU market grew 3 digits in the first 8 months of 2019. This was a positive sign for fish paste and surimi exports to this market in the context of IUU yellow card warning. It is expected that Vietnamese surimi exports will maintain a stable growth in 2019.