AMSTERDAM: Vietnamese pangasius exports grew 5.4 per cent in the first half of this year, from the one in the same period in 2015 and generated USD 790.2 million in profits, according to Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters & Producers (VASEP).
During the analysed period, China-Hong Kong was the pangasius export market experiencing the biggest growth of 66.7 per cent, by importing products for a total amounting to USD 117 million, followed by Brazil (41.1. per cent, USD 36.9 million) and the United States (17.7. per cent, USD 187.1 million).
Meanwhile, exports to the European Union fell by 6.7 per cent during the period from January to June this year, to USD 133 million, Within this bloc, those exports that grew were to Spain by 17.9 per cent and to Germany by 4.4 per cent but sales to the Netherlands declined by 13 per cent and to the UK by 22.5 per cent.
In the case of the ASEAN countries, pangasius exports to the region dropped by 1.9 per cent year on year, to USD 67.9 million. Of the three biggest single markets of the bloc, Thailand recorded a 1.8 per cent growth whereas sales to Singapore and to the Philippines declined by 1.4 per cent and 2 per cent, respectively.
VASEP highlighted that the majority of pangasius products exported to Thailand and Singapore was frozen fillets or steaks and Thailand is still a major importer of Vietnamese pangasius with stable export value.
Statistics from the association show that Vietnamese catfish exports in the second quarter experienced an improvement in comparison to the first three months of the year. This growth was boosted by sales to China, which grew by 80.6 per cent in the period from April to June, to USD 72.5 milliom. Besides, there was a 31.4 per cent increase in sales to the United States, to USD 106.5 million.
On the other hand, during the second quarter, the export value to ASEAN totalled USD 34.5 million, representing a decline of 3.3 per cent. And sales to Brazil also dropped, reaching USD 16.1 million, which is a 29.8 drop from the previous quarter.
