Exporters of fishery products could hardly achieve the target of US$10 billion in revenue this year, according to the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP).

The above information was given by Truong Dinh Hoe, General Secretary of VASEP, at a conference titled “For the sustainable development of the shrimp sector” held on May 24 in HCMC.

By the end of April, the fishery sector’s revenue only reached US$2.6 billion, dropping 30% over the same period of last year.

All fishery products and Vietnam’s major export markets, such as the U.S., China, EU, Korea and Japan, also saw a sharp fall in new orders.

Meanwhile, the domestic market has yet to show positive signs of recovery.

According to a VASEP representative, shrimp is the country’s main export product, with its revenue making up 40%-50% of the total export value of the Vietnamese fishery sector. However, in the first four months of this year, the country earned modest revenue of US$887 million from shrimp exports, falling 37% year-on-year.

Besides a decline in consumer demand leading to a sharp fall in new orders and tough access to soft loans, the shrimp sector also faces high competition from Indonesia, India and Ecuador, which produce shrimp at costs 20% to 30% lower than Vietnam.

Additionally, the investment of many competitors in deep processing, which was originally Vietnam’s strength, threatens Vietnam’s position in the market.

Source:Vietnamnet