(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Egypt is the 7th largest tuna importer for Vietnamese tuna, accounting for 2.4% of the total value of Vietnam's tuna exports to markets in the first 8 months of 2020. Although the proportion is not large, the export of tuna to Egypt in the first 8 months of 2020 was quite impressive (especially in the past two months - July and August 2020). By the end of August 2020, Vietnam's tuna exports to Egypt reached more than 10 million USD, up nearly 65% over the same period in 2019.
Egypt imports mainly processed and canned tuna products from Vietnam. In which, canned tuna products accounted for more than 95%.
Mainly processed and canned tuna products exported from Vietnam to Egypt were skipjack and bigeye tuna in oil or in salt.
The average price of canned tuna products from Vietnam to Egypt in the first 8 months of 2020 was US$2.9/kg. Compared to the same period in 2019, the average export price of canned tuna in Vietnam tended to be lower.
Currently, there are very few Vietnamese enterprises accessing the Egyptian tuna market. According to statistics of Vietnam Customs, in the first 8 months of 2020, only 5 enterprises are exporting to this market: Tuna Vietnam; FOODTECH JSC; TITHICO; Mariso Vietnam Company Limited and YUEH CHYANG CANNED FOOD.
According to the statistics of the International Trade Center (ITC), ASEAN countries such as Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, and the Philippines are the main sources of tuna for this market, dominating tuna imports of this market. Canned tuna products from these countries imported to Egypt are subject to the same tax rate of 5%.
In 2019, Vietnam was the second largest supplier for the Egyptian market. Notably, while Egypt tended to reduce tuna imports from Thailand and Indonesia, and increased imports from Vietnam, this is considered a good opportunity for Vietnamese businesses to harness this market.