Introduction
Việt Nam’s seafood exports have been severely impacted by the pandemic, resulting in reduced exports in the coming months. The Việt Nam Association Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) has stated that the seafood processing and exporting industries will continue to face challenges relating to export orders, transportation, and payments. This article will explore the reasons behind the decline in seafood exports and the forecast for the coming months.
Reasons for Reduced Seafood Exports
The pandemic has negatively impacted the seafood export industry, and the situation is likely to persist in the coming months. Major export markets such as the EU, US, and China are still grappling with the pandemic, which has led to a decrease in demand for seafood products. The reduced demand has resulted in a decrease in export orders, which has affected the transportation and payment of seafood products. These factors have collectively led to a decline in seafood exports in the first four months of this year.
Current State of Seafood Exports
According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Việt Nam’s seafood export value in the first four months of this year fell by 10 per cent year-on-year to US$2.18 billion. Việt Nam’s two major export seafood products, tra fish and shrimp, suffered the most significant decline, with about 32 per cent to $420 million and 12 per cent to $748 million, respectively. Japan, the US, EU, and mainland China were the major export markets for Vietnamese export seafood products, making up almost 58 per cent of the total export value.
Forecast for Seafood Exports
VASEP has forecasted that seafood exports in the second quarter would decrease slightly by 5 per cent year-on-year to $2 billion. However, the association expects positive growth in the third and fourth quarters of this year. The department also reported that Việt Nam’s total seafood production reached nearly 2.2 million tonnes in the first four months, up 0.4 per cent compared to the same period last year, including one million tonnes from aquaculture.
Conclusion
The pandemic has adversely impacted the seafood export industry in Việt Nam. The reduced demand and export orders have led to a decrease in transportation and payment of seafood products. Major export markets such as the EU, US, and China are still strongly affected by the pandemic, which has resulted in a decline in seafood exports in the first four months of this year. However, VASEP has forecasted that seafood exports will see positive growth in the third and fourth quarters of this year. The keyword for this content is “seafood exports.”
