Seafood exports nears 4 billion USD in first half

Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam’s seafood export turnover in June reached 794 million USD, raising the total value for the first half of the year to nearly 4 billion USD, up 0.3 percent year on year, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development’s Agro Processing and Market Development Authority (AgroTrade).

Shrimps processed for exports (Photo: VNA)

China, Japan, the Republic of Korea and the US were the largest importers of Vietnamese seafood, accounting for 55.1 percent of the total export value.

Vietnamese firms have more chances to boost seafood exports to the US as many imports from China, including high value added seafood, have been subject to a 25 percent tariff in the North American country.

In the short term, experts suggested local exporters to sell more shrimp in the US as the US Department of Commerce (DoC) has already removed the anti-dumping duty on Vietnamese frozen shrimp. The preliminary duty of 4.58 percent has been scrapped for 31 local exporters following the DoC’s 13th Period of Review (POR13), which reviewed the anti-dumping tariff on shrimp imports from Vietnam.

As for tra fish, local firms should promote shipments to non-traditional markets like China, the EU and ASEAN since the DoC has increased anti-dumping tariffs on the products by 0.96-3.87 USD per kilogramme.

It is necessary for the Vietnamese processors to upgrade and improve preservation and processing facilities, making their standards equivalent with those in China. By so doing, they will have more chances to enter the US market, according to the insiders.