(seafood.vasep.com.vn) In August 2020, Vietnam's shrimp exports reached US$394.6 million, up nearly 12% compared to August 2019. In the first 8 months of this year, shrimp exports reached US$2.3 billion, up 8.4% over the same period in 2019.
In August 2020, excluding exports to Japan and China fell, Vietnam's shrimp exports to other major markets hiked such as the US (+ 28.6%), EU (+ 15.7%), South Korea (10.2%), UK (+ 16.4%), Canada (+ 17.2%), Australia (+ 20.5%). Notably, Vietnam's shrimp exports to the EU in August 2020 achieved the highest growth rate since the beginning of this year thanks to the positive impact from the EVFTA Agreement.
In the first eight months of 2020, whiteleg shrimp accounted for 71.7% of Vietnam's total shrimp exports, black tiger shrimp accounted for 16.5%, and the rest was marine shrimp. The total value of whiteleg shrimp exports rose by 12.6% while that of black tiger shrimp declined by 15.2%. Export of processed whiteleg shrimp (HS code 16) and live/fresh/frozen whiteleg shrimp (HS code 03) increased by 22.2% and 5.2%, respectively. Export of other processed tiger shrimp (HS16) increased 32.7% while that of live/fresh/frozen tiger shrimp (HS03) shrunk by 19.2%. During the Covid-19 pandemic, the export price of whiteleg shrimp increased better than that of black tiger shrimp, and processed shrimp products were consumed more than fresh/live/frozen products.
The US: The US was the leading market for importing Vietnamese shrimp, accounting for nearly 23.6%. Vietnam's shrimp exports to the US in August 2020 grew well by 28.6% compared to August 2019. Accumulated in the first 8 months of 2020, shrimp exports to this market reached over US$544 million, up 32% over the same period in 2019. Despite the Covid-19 pandemic, Vietnam's shrimp exports to the US remained positive in all the months of the first 8 months of 2020. The US is considered the market with the most stable demand for importing Vietnamese shrimp in the first 8 months of 2020.
EU: The EU was Vietnam's fourth-largest shrimp importer after the US, Japan, and China, accounting for 13.6% of Vietnam's total shrimp export value. Vietnam shrimp exports to the EU fell continuously from March to June 2020. After a slight growth in July, Vietnam's shrimp exports to the EU recorded a growth of 15.7%, reaching US$58.8 million in August. In August 2020, Vietnam's shrimp exports to the Netherlands and Belgium went up by 15% and 41%, respectively compared to August 2019. In the first eight months of 2020, shrimp exports to the EU reached $ 313.7 million, down 2% from the same period in 2019. The EVFTA Agreement, which took effect from the beginning of August 2020, has brought a lot of expectations for Vietnam's shrimp exports to the EU market in the last months of the year.
Vietnam shrimp exports to the EU from now to the end of the year are expected to continue to increase although the growth rate is not high due to the impact from the Covid-19 pandemic. Thanks to the tax advantage of Vietnamese shrimp being better than its competitors, EU importers also look for more sources from Vietnam. Deeply processed, packaged, ready-to-eat items for home consumption are still popular.
With positive signals in Vietnam's shrimp exports in the first 8 months of this year. Vietnam shrimp exports are expected to continue to grow in the coming months. For the whole year 2020, Vietnam's shrimp export is expected to reach US$3.6 billion, up 8% compared to 2019.