Tuna exports in QII/2019 continued to grow well

In the first half of this year, export of live/fresh/frozen tuna had a good growth rate. In contrast, export of canned tuna grew slowly. Particularly, other tuna processed products (frozen skipjack/yellowfin tuna loin, bagged yellowfin/skipjack tuna in oil, frozen tuna flake...) tended to decrease over the same period in 2018.

In general, the main markets for Vietnam's tuna exports have grown well as of the end of June  compared to the same period except Israel, ASEAN and Japan. Notably in this quarter, Vietnam's tuna exports to the EU has grown again.

The US

In the last 3 months, tuna exports to the US still maintains good growth momentum. In the first 6 months of 2019, Vietnam's tuna exports to the US reached US$159 million, up 61% compared to the same period in 2018.

From May 10, 2019, the US officially imposed a new tax on Chinese tuna industry, up from 10% to 25%. China was the main tuna exporter  for the US market. The country is holding the majority of market share in the frozen tuna loin market segment of the US. This has led American companies to find alternative supplies from other countries such as Vietnam and Thailand. Therefore, compared to the same period in 2018, the export of Vietnamese tuna products to the US rose.

The EU

After the difficulties in raw materials imports in the first months of the year were solved, Vietnam's tuna exports to the EU in the second quarter of 2019 recovered, partly offseting the decline in the first 3 months of the year. Total tuna export value of Vietnam to the EU in the first 6 months of 2019 reached nearly US$71 million, up by 0.7% year on year.

With outstanding growth in June, Italy has become the largest tuna importer of Vietnam in the EU. Compared to the same period in 2018, Italy tended to increase imports of live/fresh and frozen tuna of Vietnam. In addition, notably export other processed tuna (such as frozen steamed tuna loins ...), raw materials for processing canned tuna, also increased sharply over the same period last year.

While tuna exports to the Netherlands in June dropped. However, due to good export growth of the previous 5 months, Vietnam's tuna export value to this market in the first 6 months still climbed over the same period. The Netherlands was the largest importer of frozen tuna fillet/loin code of HS0304 in the EU, accounting for more than 31% of the total import value of this product line from Vietnam.

Japan

In June, Vietnam's tuna exports to Japan showed positive signs. However, due to continuous decline in the previous 5 months, Vietnam's tuna exports to Japan in the first 6 months of 2019 was still down 9% compared to the same period in 2018. Overall, export of tuna products of Vietnam to Japan all increased over the same period, except for frozen tuna fillet/loin. In particular, the export proportion of canned processed tuna of Vietnam to Japan tended to go up so far.

It is forecasted that Vietnam's tuna exports in the coming time will continue to grow. Two new-generation trade agreements, CPTPP and EVFTA, are expected to bring more opportunities to penetrate market for Vietnamese businesses.