(vasep.com.vn) During the period 2008 – 2012, import value of scallop into China rose by over 600 percent. Only in 2012, scallop imports into the country rose by 180 percent from 2011.
Last year, China was the sixth largest importer of bivalve mollusk originated from Vietnam after EU, Japan, the U.S., South Korea and ASEAN. However, in the same year, exports of this item to China-Hong Kong dropped 20.4 percent from 2011 due to instability of export price.
In Jan-Feb 2013, Vietnam’s bivalve mollusk export value to China-Hong Kong scored the gain of 454 percent from the same period of 2012. In the second quarter of 2013, bivalve mollusk imports (especially scallop and clam) into China is slated to increase sharply.
In 2012, China continued to import a large volume of oyster and clam from Vietnam of which oyster is mainly consumed at local restaurants and hotels. Annually, China imported about US$13 million of mollusk from Vietnam, largely clam (HS code 030779 and 030771). However, in 2012, Canada and Thailand were the two largest clam suppliers for China, accounting for 80 – 97 percent of total clam imports into the country.