Vietnam's shrimp exports to South Korea have grown quite well since the beginning of the year with continuous positive growth rates from January to September. However, in October the export value decreased slightly by 1% as enterprises are facing many difficulties such as high global inflation, reduced orders, and lack of production capital.
Vietnam's shrimp exports to South Korea in 2022 are more positive than in 2021 thanks to the advantage of geographical location. Like the Japanese market, South Korea is the preferred export market for enterprises in the context of high freight rates, record inflation and falling demand in the US and EU markets.
Vietnamese shrimp still dominates the South Korea market
Besides, Vietnamese shrimp exported to Korea enjoy preferential treatment under the Vietnam - Korea Free Trade Agreement (VKFTA) with a duty-free quota of 15,000 tons per year. According to the World Trade Center (ITC), in the first 10 months of 2022, South Korea's shrimp imports reached more than US$819 million, up 19% over the same period in 2021. In the Korean market, Vietnam accounted for the highest market share of 45% while other suppliers such as China, Thailand, and Ecuador accounted for 7.9%, 7.7% and 6.4% respectively.
|
South Korea shrimp imports, Jan-Oct 2022 (Million USD, Source: ITC) |
|||
|
Source |
Jan-Oct 2021 |
Jan-Oct 2022 |
Change (%) |
|
Total import |
688,983 |
819,396 |
18.9 |
|
Vietnam |
295,492 |
368,866 |
24.8 |
|
Canada |
81,765 |
102,799 |
25.7 |
|
China |
54,835 |
65,062 |
18.7 |
|
Thailand |
81,921 |
63,735 |
-22.2 |
|
Ecuador |
62,672 |
52,490 |
-16.2 |
|
Malaysia |
32,001 |
34,577 |
8.0 |
|
India |
11,164 |
18,171 |
62.8 |
|
Peru |
20,200 |
52,380 |
159.3 |
As of October this year, Vietnam and China increased shrimp exports to South Korea by 25% and 19% respectively while the two main competitors of Vietnamese shrimp, Thailand and Ecuador, reduced shrimp exports to this market by 22 % and 16% over the same period in 2021.
Thai shrimp production this year faces many difficulties. Moreover, the price of Thai shrimp in the Korean market is less competitive than other competitors. Ecuador only focuses on exporting strongly to China, the US doesn’t focus much on exporting to Korea.
South Korea's economic growth in the coming time is forecasted better due to the easing of geopolitical tensions and the easing of China's zero-covid policy. China is currently South Korea's strategic trading partner. Trade relations between the two countries are on the rise along with trade agreements such as the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the two countries. Therefore, this will also be a good signal for Vietnam to increase shrimp exports to this market.
Compiled by Thuy Linh
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