Vietnam cephalopod exports in QII to slip

Squid products kept as the main export items in the period. Exports of cephalopod products increased compared to the same period in 2017, except for other processed squid and live/fresh/frozen squid.

In April, cephalopod sales to some major markets such as Japan, the EU, ASEAN, USA and Israel declined. However, thanks to the positive growth in the first months, export to these markets have been growing well, the figure in the first four months of the year registered a rise, except for the EU.

South Korea: Exports to South Korea continued to grow well. Cephalopod exports to the market in April 2018 reached nearly US$19 million, up 7% over the same period in 2017; the figure in the first 4 months amounted to US$64 million, up 12% over the same period of 2017. Currently, the share of Vietnam's cephalopod sales to this market has increased to 37%.

Japan: Vietnam’s cephalopod exports to Japan in April 2018 decreased. Exports of this item to the market valued at US$11 million, down 4% over the same period in 2017. The figure in the first 4 months of this year estimated to US$42 million, up 11% compared to the same period last year. Japan's economy continued to show signs of recovery while the yen has increased which led to the rise of the import demand and facilitated Vietnam’s cephalopod exports to this market.

The EU: This market has now returned to the third rank in top leading cephalopod importers of Vietnam. Vietnam’s cephalopod exports to the bloc in April 2018 reached US$6 million, down 34% compared with April 2017. The figure in the first four months of this year hit US$23 million, decreasing by 20% year on year. Italy, France and Spain continued to hold as top three biggest importing markets of Vietnamese cephalopod in the EU. Of that, exports to Italy and France continued to decrease by 26% and 13%, respectively.

ASEAN: In April 2018, Vietnam’s cephalopod exports to ASEAN decreased 10% to reach US$5 million. However, the figure in the first four months of this year totaled US$21 million, rising by 17%. Exports to Thailand - the largest importer of Vietnam in the region, were down 17%. Vietnam’s cephalopod exports to Thailand in the first four months of 2018 reached US$16 million, up nearly 23%.

China: Vietnam’s cephalopod exports to this market continued to show the high growth. In April 2018, exports to the country hit US$4.4 million, an increase of 127% over the same period of 2017; the figure in Jan-Apr 2018 amounted to nearly US$14 million, up 158% over the same period in 2017.