(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Accumulated in the first 8 months of 2021, Vietnam's seafood exports reached nearly $5.6 billion, still increasing by about 7% thanks to high export results in the first 7 months of the year. In which, shrimp exports increased by 6.4% to 2.45 billion USD, pangasius exports reached 993 million USD, up 8.8%, tuna exports grew 12%, cephalopod and other fish exports increased by 4-5 %.
By the end of August, seafood exports to the US still maintained a growth rate of nearly 27%, and to the EU increased by 10%. Exports to Korea are equivalent to the same period last year. In the top 5 markets, exports to China fell deeply by 14.6%, exports to Japan decreased by nearly 3%. Besides the US and EU, exports to Australia and Russia after 8 months still maintained high growth, increasing by 25% and 52% respectively over the same period last year.
The Covid-19 epidemic broke out strongly in the focus area of Vietnam's seafood, accounting for 90-95% of the country's seafood export turnover as well as the industry's workforce, causing difficulties for the business community.
The seafood export results in August 2021 clearly reflected the impact of the Covid-19 epidemic on the seafood industry. With a turnover of USD 588 million, seafood exports in August 2021 decreased by nearly 28% compared to the same period last year and decreased in most key products. Exports of shrimp, pangasius, tuna, squid, octopus, crabs and other marine fish all decreased by 20-33% over the same period in 2020.
Exports to all markets in August 2021 decreased by 16 - 50% compared to the same period in 2020.Accordingly, exports to China and Japan both decreased sharply by 36%, to the EU decreased by 32% (only to the Netherlands decreased by nearly 50%, Germany decreased by 42%). Exports to the US and Russia decreased by at least 16%. Exports to the UK fell by 48%, to Australia and Canada by 35% and 37% respectively.
However, with the policy of supporting and promptly removing difficulties, obstacles and bottlenecks hindering production and trade activities of enterprises before the impact of the COVID-19 epidemic, as content of Resolution No. 105/NQ-CP dated September 9, 2021 of the Government, seafood enterprises hope to have conditions and support programs to resume supply chains and gradually restore production and export from now on. 9/15. With the situation of epidemic control getting better, the policies and measures to combat the epidemic that are reasonable and suitable for both economic goals, seafood exports will accelerate in the last 3 months of the year, especially from October - the time when demand and export orders often increase.