This is significant given how real estate developers, riding China’s frenzied urbanization, have provided a steady source of customers for China’s high-end seafood restaurants. The signs of real estate-fueled wealth are obvious in the Bohai Bay port city of Yantai, but so too are the effects of the credit curbs. Built by one of China’s largest real estate developers, Shimao, the “Above the Clouds” high-rise luxury apartment development under construction will “rewrite the latitude of wealth in Yantai” according to an advert in the Yantai Daily newspaper. Construction however is only half-complete, a year behind schedule.
However, government’s piecemeal easing of interest rates and banks’ lending allowances this year have loosened up credit for the real estate sector, traditionally the driver of China’s economy. Housing prices and sales numbers have both been inching up again and this will encourage developers to start building again.
Even if an economic pick-up is around the corner, in the meantime China’s restaurants are feeling the pinch. In the prosperous south coastal city of Xiamen, more than 18 percent of restaurants fail and close on a monthly basis, according to the Chinese Cuisine Association (CCA), which described the figure as the worst in a decade.
A key reason may be rents, rising due to government restrictions on home purchases.
“Even as the property sector has cooled, rents went up 20 percent in the past year. This is because people are not buying real estate so there’s more competition for rentals,” according to the maitre d’ at the spacious Shandong Shui Chan restaurant in the Beijing Central Park residential-commercial complex.
Restaurateurs in Beijing point to wages and rents as key factors: The former has risen threefold in the past eight years, said proprietors. Rents since 2008 have risen by a similar amount. Having to pay higher wages and rents is especially difficult for eateries catering to the majority of Beijing residents who earn the city’s average wage of RMB 2,500 a month.
Input costs by contrast may be more negotiable, said one restaurateur who wouldn’t disclose his seafood suppliers. Beijing restaurateurs are incredibly wary about discussing the geographic sources of their seafood — bass and shrimp, for instance, are described as “Asian” on some menus. There’s anecdotal evidence from visits to Beijing fish markets that fish served at premium import prices are in fact produced in China, in effect allowing restaurateurs greater margins.
A stall holder at the Sanyuanli wet market in Beijing, popular with hoteliers and restaurateurs, explained how his key sellers are garoupa, mackerel and bass (RMB 35, RMB 15 and RMB 18 per 500 grams, respectively).
“The bass comes from Fujian or Qingdao, it’s all local…I know these are popular with western- style restaurants but this is Chinese product for sure, not imported.” Likewise, the snapper priced at RMB 30 per 500 grams is locally produced, explained Wang Ge, who buys his fish from wholesalers and distributors as well as carp producers near Beijing.
Others are downgrading prices. The usually upscale Shunfung Seafood Restaurant chain has promised to start offering value lunch sets. A branch of the restaurant in Beijing, popular with government officials and diplomats, offers a selection of grouper (RMB 380 to RMB 480 per fish), Atlantic cod (varies from RMB 120 to RMB 300 according to dish) and South African oysters (RMB 56 a piece).
Fast-food chains have benefited, to some extent in a slower economy. KFC, with 3,900 outlets across China, has seen revenues rise in the first half of 2012 but the chain has also complained that its profits have fallen due to higher costs (including rent) and wages. Worried about more restaurant closures, the CCA has requested government to cut taxes on restaurants.
(seafoo.vasep.com.vn) Ca Mau Province is stepping up efforts to protect aquatic resources and promote transparent and sustainable fisheries, joining the country’s efforts to have the European Commission (EC) remove its “yellow card” warning for illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing.
(vasep.com.vn) Vietnam has strengthened its position in China’s massive seafood market, becoming the largest lobster supplier while maintaining a dominant share of the country’s imported pangasius.
(vasep.com.vn) Vietfish 2026 was more than just a larger exhibition space. Through B2B meetings, booth discussions, production-chain visits and post-show feedback, businesses and buyers found something more concrete: suitable suppliers, processing capabilities, technology solutions, new markets and a foundation for building long-term trust and partnerships.
(vasep.com.vn) Vietnam’s tilapia exports to the United States declined significantly in the first seven months of 2026. Cumulative export value reached US$18 million, down 42% from the same period in 2025. In July alone, exports amounted to just US$2 million, plunging 70%, indicating a clear slowdown in import demand from the US market.
(vasep.com.vn) At the seminar “Global Seafood Markets and the Future Workforce: Trends, Opportunities and Directions for the Sustainable Development of Vietnam’s Fisheries Sector,” held as part of VIETFISH 2026, Ms. Shirlene Maria Anthonysamy, Fisheries Officer (Markets) and GLOBEFISH Coordinator at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), presented initiatives aimed at promoting youth participation in fisheries and aquaculture.
(vasep.com.vn) In the first seven months of 2026, Vietnam’s pangasius exports to the United States reached US$189 million, down 8% year-on-year. In July alone, export value reached US$22 million, down 28%. This trend indicates that U.S. demand for pangasius imports has remained relatively cautious this year, as importers tend to maintain moderate inventory levels and limit stockpiling.
(vasep.com.vn) After three days at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center (SECC) in Ho Chi Minh City, the Vietnam International Fisheries Exhibition – VIETFISH 2026 – has successfully concluded, leaving a strong impression in terms of scale, visitor numbers, the quality of business connections, and innovative activities. With more than 14,000 m² of exhibition space, 335 companies, 568 booths, participation from representatives of 17 countries and territories, and nearly 15,000 visitors, VIETFISH 2026 has once again affirmed its role as an important meeting point for Vietnam’s and the global seafood industry.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Held as part of Vietfish 2026 from August 19–21 at SECC in Ho Chi Minh City, a series of five specialized seminars provided the seafood business community with updates on markets, technology, standards, human resources and cooperation opportunities. With the participation of experts, international organizations, government agencies and businesses from Vietnam and abroad, the seminars created an additional platform for professional exchange alongside the exhibition’s product showcases and business networking activities.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) On the morning of August 19, 2026, the Vietnam International Seafood Exhibition – VIETFISH 2026 officially opened at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center (SECC) in Ho Chi Minh City. With 568 booths representing 335 companies, alongside the presence of senior government officials, local authorities, diplomatic missions and international partners, VIETFISH 2026 kicks off three days of business networking, technology exchange and market engagement under the overarching theme “Innovation and Sustainability.”
The Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) officially announces that the Vietnam International Seafood Exhibition (Vietfish 2026) will take place from August 19–21, 2026, at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center (SECC), Ho Chi Minh City.
VASEP - HIỆP HỘI CHẾ BIẾN VÀ XUẤT KHẨU THỦY SẢN VIỆT NAM
Chịu trách nhiệm: Ông Nguyễn Hoài Nam - Phó Tổng thư ký Hiệp hội
Đơn vị vận hành trang tin điện tử: Trung tâm VASEP.PRO
Trưởng Ban Biên tập: Bà Phùng Thị Kim Thu
Giấy phép hoạt động Trang thông tin điện tử tổng hợp số 138/GP-TTĐT, ngày 01/10/2013 của Bộ Thông tin và Truyền thông
Tel: (+84 24) 3.7715055 – (ext.203); email: kimthu@vasep.com.vn
Trụ sở: Số 7 đường Nguyễn Quý Cảnh, Phường An Phú, Quận 2, Tp.Hồ Chí Minh
Tel: (+84) 28.628.10430 - Fax: (+84) 28.628.10437 - Email: vasephcm@vasep.com.vn
VPĐD: số 10, Nguyễn Công Hoan, Ngọc Khánh, Ba Đình, Hà Nội
Tel: (+84 24) 3.7715055 - Fax: (+84 24) 37715084 - Email: vasephn@vasep.com.vn