|
Seafood likely to net year’s target
The seafood sector expects a rise in exports by the end of the year as the global economy continues to recover, according to the Viet Nam Association of Seafood Producers and Exporters (VASEP).
The EU has become the biggest importer of the fish from Viet Nam, making up 41.4% of the market share.
Over the last 10 months, the sector earned US$3.48 billion in export revenue, close to its target of $4.4 billion for the year, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade.
Of the total exports, shrimp and tra and basa fish top the list, accounting for 36.9 per cent and 32.7 per cent in value, respectively.
The EU has become the biggest importer of the fish from Viet Nam, making up 41.4 per cent of the market share.
Russia and Ukraine markets saw a sharp fall of 67.7 and 44.5 per cent, respectively, due to the economic downturn.
Spain, which is the biggest importer of tra and basa fish in the EU bloc, has said that Vietnamese seafood, meets EU's food safety and hygiene standards. It imports an estimated 40,000 tonnes each year.
The vice chairman of An Giang Province's Catfish Producers and Processors, Le Chi Binh, has told breeders to raise fish according to market demand in order to avoid losses when they sell fish at low prices during peak season, when supply exceeds demand.
While the industry expects higher profits as the economic downturn recedes, the removal of trade and technical barriers has also increased export growth.
In addition, the Japan-Viet Nam Economic Partnership Agreement took effect in early October, under which 86 per cent of agricultural, forestry and aquatic products exported to Japanese markets enjoy preferential tax.
To meet demand, VASEP has urged the seafood sector to supply sufficient raw materials for processing plants. The country has 700 processing plants but they operate at less than 50 per cent of capacity due to a shortage of raw materials.
It has also proposed that the Government cut the tax on imported seafood materials to zero per cent.
The ministry said the sector in the last two months of the year should focus on potential markets such as South Korea, which has an annual consumption of 7,300 tonnes of Vietnamese shrimp a year, and Russia, which has a high demand for tra fish. Japan and the Middle East are also strong markets.
The ministry believes that exploitation of these markets could help export value reach $1.75 billion in the last quarter of the year.
vietnamnet, vietnamnews
|
