Vietnam shrimp exports to Japan to go up this year

Imported shrimp to Japan went down due to high inventories volume from the beginning of the year and fluctuations in the Yen. In addition, suppliers such as China and Argentina reduced shrimp exports to Japan due to declining domestic shrimp supplies.

Vietnam was still the largest shrimp supplier to Japan, accounting for 25.6% of the total value of shrimp imports to this country. Thailand ranked second at 18%, followed by Indonesia at 14.9% and India at 14%. The average price of imported shrimp from Vietnam was the highest (US$11.3/kg) in the top of the main suppliers. Therefore, Vietnam must compete on price with other suppliers in this market (Indonesia: US$11/ kg, Thailand: US$11/ kg, India: US$9.2 / kg, Argentina US$9.6/ kg, China US$8 / kg ...)

According to Vietnam Customs, Vietnam shrimp exports to Japan in 2018 reached 639.4 million, down 9.2% compared to the same period in 2017. Japan is currently the second largest shrimp import market of Vietnam, accounting for 18% of total export value of Vietnamese shrimp to international markets.

In 2018, the export of Vietnamese shrimp to Japan only climbed in January and November, the remaining months has negative growth compared to the same period in 2017. The value of shrimp export to Japan decreased partly due to the fluctuation of the Yen and the fierce competition of rival suppliers such as India and Thailand. India had difficulties in exporting to Europe, therefore they increased export to Japan.

Frozen Nobashi white leg shrimp (headless, peeled, tail-on and straightened) with sizes of 26/30, 31/35, 41/50 were priced from US$10.2 to US$11.2/ kg. Fresh white leg shrimp (headless, peeled, tail-on, straightened) with sizes of 2L, 4L, 5L, 7L were priced from US$9.5 to US$11.2/ kg.

Over the years, Vietnam has maintained its No. 1 position in supplying shrimp to Japan thanks to the ASEAN-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (AJCEP) which took effect in December 1, 2008 as well as the Vietnam - Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (VJEPA) which came into effect from October 1, 2009.These agreements facilitated the exporting of Vietnamese seafood to Japan thanks to declining tariffs. Specifically, soon after the AJCEP Agreement came into force in 2009, shrimp products have enjoyed a 0% tax rate.

Since January 14, 2019, the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) has officially come into effect in Viet Nam. Accordingly, Vietnamese shrimp exports to Japan will benefit from this Agreement.

Ready-to-eat shrimp products will grow well in the coming times. The reason being that Japan's ready-to-eat food industry increased due to the increase in the population of single people and a fall in home cooking. In order to promote shrimp export to Japan, enterprises should innovate market access methods along with promoting their brands more strongly, ensuring product quality. It is forecast that Vietnam shrimp exports to Japan in 2019 will achieve 2-digit growth compared to 2018.