(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Accounting for 17 - 18% of Vietnam's seafood exports in the past 2 years with a value of over $1.4 billion, China is in the top 3 import markets of Vietnamese seafood. However, because exports to this market have declined continuously since the beginning of the year, so in the first three quarters of 2021, exports to China only account for 11% of Vietnam's total seafood exports.
From April 2021, Vietnam's seafood exports to the Chinese market continuously decreased by 11-51% due to strict control of imported frozen seafood at the main ports of this country, causing congestion and costly for Chinese importers and affecting profits of importers as well as Vietnamese exporters. More affected by the Covid outbreak from July 2021, exports to China in the third quarter fell further: down 36% in August and 51% in September.
As of the end of September 2021, Vietnam's seafood exports to China decreased by 20.5% over the same period last year, reaching $768 million. In which, the two main products, shrimp and pangasius, accounted for 39% and 36% of the total seafood export value to this market, respectively, reaching 298 million USD and 279 million USD, down 23% and 20% over the same period of 2020. Shrimp exports to China decreased by 23%, mainly because black tiger shrimp exports decreased by 12% and lobster exports fell by 82%.
In addition, China is also an important crab import market of Vietnam, mainly importing live crab. By the end of September, crab exports to this market reached 36 million USD, down 21% over the same period last year.
In the face of strict control by Chinese Customs, it is forecast that Vietnam's seafood exports to China will continue to fall deeply in the last 3 months of the year, reaching $242 million in the fourth quarter, down 40%. Accordingly, it is forecasted that seafood exports to this market in 2021 will reach about 1 billion USD, down 26%.