Vietnam exported shrimp price rose in the first half of 2013

Thailand’s shrimp production, which counts for about 500,000-550,000 MT a year, was hit the most. There is a recent speculation in Thailand that its production this year could shrink by 50 percent compared to 550,000 MT of the past year.

Reports from main shrimp importers (the U.S., EU, Japan) showed that the shrimp price tends to increase rapidly. The supply shortage is the main cause affecting the price on the global market. Supply shortage was also one of the main factors contributing to increase the value of Vietnam shrimp exports in the first half of 2013.

According to Vietnam Customs, Vietnam shrimp exports in the first six months of this year reached over US$1.1 billion, up 8.6 percent against the past year, in which exports to main markets like Japan, the U.S., China and Canada marked a positive growth.

In Jun 2013, shrimp shipment to Japan – the largest importer of Vietnam shrimp – was up 7.9 percent from that of the same period of 2012. Jun was the consecutive fourth month during which shrimp exports, registered a positive growth. This led to a growth of 6.6 percent in shrimp sales to Japan in Jan-Jun 2013 with an export turnover of US$293.9 million. According to FIS’s report, Japan’s inventory of shrimp, particularly black tiger shrimp, shranks sharply after one-year of restriction imposed by the Japanese government on shrimp imports. The market, in fact, tested imported shrimp from Vietnam and India for Ethoxyquin residues at the very low level of 0.01 ppm.

Shrimp supply from other producers could not compensate the shortage, causing a strong increase of the shrimp price in the Japanese market. According to Japanese Customs, in the first 5 months of 2013, imports of frozen raw shrimp into Japan dipped 1 percent in volume but surged 12 percent in value compared to the same period of 2012. According to FIS’s report, in the Japanese market, the selling price of HLSO black tiger shrimp, of which 16/20 are imported from Vietnam, was US$12 per kilogram in the late December 2012 and increased by 35 percent to US$16.2 per kilogram in the late Jun 2013.

Amid upward trend of shrimp price in global market, in the U.S. market, shrimp price from Vietnam also saw a remarkable growth, resulting in an increase of shrimp export value, even if Vietnam shrimp exporters are facing difficulties caused by barriers imposed by this market.

In the U.S. market, the price of HLSO black tiger shrimp made up of 16/20 of shrimps coming from Vietnam was US$10.4 per kg in Jan 2013 and increased to US$12.2 per kg in the late Jun 2013. Thanks to the increase in export price, shrimp exports to the U.S. rose considerably. In Jan-Jun 2013, shrimp exports to the market generated US$252.3 million, up 22.4 percent compared to Jan-Jun 2012.

In Jan-Jun 2013, the proportion of whiteleg shrimp, among the structure of exported shrimp, increased. Whiteleg shrimp accounted for 41.3 percent of total shrimp export value while black tiger shrimp reached the 50.8 percent. In the first half of 2013, Vietnam’s exports of whiteleg shrimp earned over US$455.86 million and US$560.33 million was the export turnover of black tiger shrimp. The higher proportion of whiteleg shrimp was attributable to shrimp undersupply caused by disease and global consumers’ higher demand for cheap shrimp. According to Directorate of Fisheries, black tiger shrimp production in Jan-Jun 2013 reached 80,000 MT, down 27.1 percent from Jan-Jun 2012, while whiteleg shrimp output was 20,000 MT, up 33.3 percent compared to the same period.

In 2013 the total shrimp supply, for the global market, will diminish due to drastic fall in shrimp production caused by disease outbreaks in the main countries of production. Increasing demand for raw shrimp drove its price up sharply in the first six months of the year. From now until the late 2013, it will be the main harvest period for some large producers and the production can be improved. However, in the context of a sharp drop in supply from one hand, above all from Thai shrimp farms, and the increasing demand in the late months of 2013 from the other it is likely that the shrimp price will continue to be on a recovery trend.