HANOI: Vietnam earned US$1.65 billion from seafood exports in the first quarter, down 17 percent from the same period last year, an industry group said.
Shrimp exports, accounting for 42 percent of the seafood sector’s revenue, reached $798 million, down 28 percent, the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Processors (VASEP) said on its website Monday.Seafood exports to most major markets like the US, the EU and Japan fell sharply, partly because of strong competition from India, Malaysia and Indonesia, the group said.
Shipments to China, meanwhile, rose 50 percent by value, followed by Russia with 11 percent and the ASEAN bloc with 9 percent.VASEP expects the country’s seafood exports to hit $8 billion this year, slightly up from last year’s $7.9 billion.
