Fisheries export slump eases in September, signs of recovery seen

The slump in fisheries exports eased in September, with estimated revenue reaching 820 million USD, an increase of 0.6 percent year-on-year, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD).

Shipments totalled 6.03 billion USD in the first three quarters, down 3 percent year-on-year but showing signs of a rebound in the third quarter after declines of 14 percent and nearly 9 percent were posted in the first and second quarters, respectively, due to the impact of COVID-19.

The US, Japan, the EU, China, and the Republic of Korea remain the largest importers of Vietnam’s fisheries products, accounting for 60 percent of the total.

Among Vietnam’s key fisheries products, only shrimp have posted growth in exports over the last nine months, accounting for more than 44 percent of total shipments while pangasius exports decreased.

After the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) entered into force in August, fisheries exports to the EU rose slightly that month, by 1 percent year-on-year, with the largest growth posted in shrimp, squid, and octopus, according to MARD’s Agro Processing and Market Development Authority.

The authority forecast that exports to the US, Vietnam’s largest buyer of fisheries products, would continue to recover over the remaining months of the year thanks to growing demand during the year-end holidays.

VNA