“Before Vietnam only used to sell whole fish to the border region in southern China. Now fillet pangasius goes to Beijing and to Shanghai and even now goes to Dalian. The demand will be much higher.” Truong Dinh Hoe, General Secretary of the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers said.
Vietnam’s pangasius exporters benefited from the China-US trade rift last year, with major importers switching to Vietnamese pangasius. The fish is a type of catfish and widely accepted by US consumers
Vietnam is the world’s largest pangasius producer, achieving 1.33 million metric tons of output in 2018, versus 1.25m in 2017, The next biggest players are India with 540,000t of output in 2018, Bangladesh with 455,000t, and Indonesia with 110,000t.
China is fast catching up with the European Union as the world’s biggest seafood importer, as imports reached almost 5m metric tons seafood last year, according to Rabobank. Pangasius is a “really good choice” for Chinese customers seeking white fish fillets given that Vietnam neighbors the world’s most populous nation, Truong Dinh Hoe said.
One of the last challenges to overcome was getting Chinese customers to buy imported fillets, instead of whole fish, he said. China’s GDP per capita has surged from $3,471 in 2008 to $8,827 in 2017, according to World Bank data. By contrast, Vietnam’s GDP per capita rose from $1,143 to $2,342 over the same period, broadly meaning it’s labor costs are now much cheaper than China.
This means that selling fillets made on the Mekong Delta to China is highly competitive.
Currently, seafood exports to China is increasingly convenient with low cost. Almost seafood exporters in the South have moved from road transportation to marinetime transpotation. Compared to exports through unofficiall route by road, officiall exports by seaway helps enterprises limit payment, product quality risks and save costs.
In 2019, it will be an opportunity for enterprises to expand exports by sea freight to major cities of China to improve the quality and quantity of official exports. Seafood exports to the Chinese market are forecast to reach US$1.5 billion this year, of which pangasius is one of the key products.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Nearly US$1.7 billion is the projected gap in 2029 between the baseline scenario and a scenario in which Vietnam’s seafood exports grow by 10% annually, according to calculations by VASEP to be presented at Vietnam Seafood Summit 2026. This gap raises a key question for the entire industry: Which markets, products and supply chain improvements will generate the additional growth?
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Although Germany’s tuna imports have declined, Vietnam’s tuna exports to the market continue to show positive signs. Notably, export value recovered strongly in Q3/2026, and German import data also show Vietnamese products strengthening their position amid competition among suppliers.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Seafood exports are holding double-digit growth, but the opportunities are not spread evenly across product groups and markets. As businesses draw up their plans for 2027, Vietnam Seafood Summit 2026 (VSS2026) offers a chance to look ahead together: what to sell, where to sell it, and how to prepare for growth in the coming years.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) With less than two weeks to go, the Vietnam Seafood Summit 2026 (VSS 2026) will officially take place in Can Tho. Under the theme “Seafood Market Outlook 2027–2029 – Opportunities and Potential for Double-Digit Export Growth,” the Summit is organized by VASEP at a time when seafood businesses are facing rapid market shifts, changing buyer demand, trade policy changes and growing competitive pressure all at once.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) On October 28, 2026, the China Fisheries & Seafood Expo opened in Qingdao, China. The expo takes place over three days from October 28 to 30, 2026. This is a prestigious specialized seafood exhibition organized annually by Sea Fare Exposition Inc.
(vasep.com.vn) In the first nine months of 2026, Vietnam’s tilapia exports to the CPTPP bloc reached $7 million, marking a 51% year-on-year increase. The bloc rstands as the fourth-largest market for Vietnamese tilapia, trailing Brazil, the US, and Saudi Arabia.
(vasep.com.vn) VASEP has officially announced the program for Vietnam Seafood Summit 2026 (VSS 2026), featuring five in-depth sessions covering industry outlooks, trade barriers, buyer demand, the domestic market, and solutions to improve productivity and reduce costs across the seafood value chain.
(vasep.com.vn) Vietnam’s shrimp exports reached US$3.7 billion in the first nine months of 2026, up 11% year on year. Although growth has been supported by China and several markets within the CPTPP, momentum is slowing as exports to the United States and the European Union decline. Tariff pressures, international competition, and raw material challenges are creating significant hurdles for exporters in the final months of the year.
(vasep.com.vn) Markets are changing faster, buyer requirements are becoming more demanding, and trade barriers are growing increasingly complex. In this environment, seafood businesses need more than an understanding of current market conditions. They need a longer-term perspective to answer a critical question: Where will growth opportunities come from in 2027–2029, and what should businesses do now to prepare? This is one of the key reasons why VASEP is organizing Vietnam Seafood Summit 2026.
(vasep.com.vn) In the first eight months of 2026, Vietnam’s pangasius exports to the Middle East reached US$113 million, up 7% year on year from the same period in 2025. Growth has become more pronounced in recent months. In August alone, exports to the region totaled US$20 million, an increase of 24%. This indicates that demand for Vietnamese pangasius in the Middle East is gradually recovering after a slowdown in March, although the pace of recovery varies across markets.
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