Tuna exports expand 10 percent in 2019

Hanoi – Last year, Vietnam’s tuna exports exceeded 719 million USD, an increase of 10.2 percent from 2018, according to the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP).

Tuna exports expand 10 percent in 2019. (Photo: VNA)

Exports saw strong growth at the beginning of the year but slowed towards the year-end.

Tuna exports to the European Union accounted for roughly 140 million USD, down 11.8 percent year-on-year as a consequence of the EU’s “yellow card” warning issued in October 2017 after the country failed to demonstrate sufficient progress in fighting illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing.

From the second largest importer of Vietnam’s aquatic products, the EU fell to fifth, behind the US, Japan, the Republic of Korea, and China.

Vietnam has forecast 15-percent growth in tuna shipments in 2020 but in the first months of the year, only slight increases are likely because of the relatively high inventories held by key foreign markets.