Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam raked in 700million USD from aquatic exports in January, a year-on-year rise of 15.2percent, according to the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters andProducers (VASEP).
China, Japan, the US and the EU were the biggestimporters of Vietnam’s aquatic products in the month.
China topped the list with growth of 50 percentto 109.26 million USD, followed by Japan with 100.71 million USD, up 18.1percent.
The US came third with an import turnover of 95million USD, a year-on-year increase of 17.1 percent, while the EU posted anannual decrease of 9.1 percent to 86 million USD.
In January, most aquatic products recorded goodgrowth, except for shrimp due to fierce competition from markets like China,India and Ecuador.
Specifically, shrimp export turnover wasestimated at 190.7 million USD, down 10.6 percent against the same period lastyear.
On a positive note, tra fish exports rose 34.7percent to 192 million USD and tuna exports hit 48 million USD, a year-on-yearrise of 16.9 percent.
VASEP Secretary General Truong Dinh Hoe said in2018, the aquatic sector exported nearly 9 billion USD worth of products, afigure expected to grow from 15 to 18 percent to reach 10 billion USD in 2019.
The backbone for this year’s growth target liesin tuna exports because there is plenty of room to develop this fish, he said.
The shrimp sector aims to boost exports to theEU to 1 billion USD in 2019 from 750 million USD in 2018, he added.
Apart from the quality of products, goodscertification and added value, businesses should outline plans to make inroadsinto the EU, Hoe suggested.
He expressed his belief for a better outcome ofthe aquatic industry in 2019 thanks to new-generation free trade agreements andthe State’s favourable policies.-VNA