(seafood. vasep.com.vn) Pangasius exports in the first 8 months of this year reached 1.8 billion USD – an optimistic figure for businesses in this industry. Pangasius exports in the last 3 months have gradually dropped from the peak of 310 million USD in April, but have tended to recover since August.
In August 2022, Vietnam pangasius exports reached 195 million USD, a slight increase compared to July and up 123% compared to the same period in 2021. This growth rate does not reflect the positive trend because August 2021 was the peak of the covid 19 pandemic, export activities were almost shut down.
In August, Vietnam's pangasius exports to many markets showed positive signs. In which, exports to China were 37% higher than the previous month, reaching nearly 61 million USD, nearly double the sales to the US market.
Brazil, Thailand, Colombia, Japan, and Malaysia markets all tend to increase pangasius imports in August.
However, pangasius exports to some markets slowed down in August compaired to July. For example, Mexico decreased by 28%, the UK by 17%, Canada by 35%, Australia by 13%, the EU by 10%.
Although pangasius exports to the US have recovered slightly, up 4% compared to the previous month, the sales are still quite modest at 33 million USD. Pangasius exports to this market are expected to be more positive in September and October when inventories decrease and import demand increase to serve for the year-end and New Year holidays. Moreover, the inflation in the US is forecast to remain high in the last months of the year, which will drive the country's food and seafood consumption towards affordable products such as pangasius.
The US Department of Commerce (DOC) has issued the Final Conclusion of the 18th Anti-Dumping Tax Administration Review (POR18) for the period from August 1, 2020 to July 31, 2021 for Vietnamese pangasius. Accordingly, DOC has kept the anti-dumping tax rate applied to each company based on the results of the most recent surveys. Therefore, this decision does not affect the trend of pangasius exports to the US this year.
The average export price of frozen pangasius in August 2022 reached US$2.81/kg, the lowest level in the past 6 months. In particular, the price of pangasius exported to the US still reached the highest level of 5 USD/kg, which is the highest level since the beginning of the year. The average price of frozen pangasius exported to China reached $2.39/kg in August. The export price to the Philippines was the lowest in the markets, reaching 1.57 USD/kg.
In general, the average price of pangasius exports in the first 8 months of this year increased sharply compared to the same period in 2021. In which, the average price of frozen pangasius exports to the US reached $4.64/kg, to China reached 2.47 USD, to Mexico 2.75 USD, to Thailand reached 2.15 USD and to Brazil reached 3.20 USD/kg.
Compiled by Thuy Linh