According to the Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), ending a series of declines of 8 consecutive months, Vietnam's pangasius exports in September gained positive growth with a turnover of USD 167 million, increased by 1% compared to September 2022.

Among them, some markets recorded positive double-digit growth such as China and Hong Kong, EU, Brazil, Mexico, etc.

In September, pangasius exports to China and Hong Kong reached USD 56 million, an increase of 15% over the same period last year. Accumulated over the first nine months of 2023, export turnover to China and Hong Kong reached USD 434 million, a decrease of 26% compared to the same period in 2022.

China and Hong Kong have continuously led the top import markets of Vietnam’s pangasius from 2019 to present.

In addition to China, the EU also increased imports of Vietnam's pangasius in September, with turnover reaching USD 14 million, an increase of 9% compared to August and an increase of 11% compared to September 2022.

In the first 9 months of 2023, the EU imported USD 129 million of pangasius, a decrease of 19% over the same period last year. With export value resuming positive growth in September, VASEP believes that the EU is gradually returning to the top markets importing pangasius from Vietnam.

On the contrary, pangasius exports to markets such as the US, CPTPP, Korea Republic, and Singapore in September still decreased by 3% - 54% compared to the same period last year.

In September alone, the US bought nearly USD 23 million of Vietname's pangasius, a decrease of 29% over the same period last year. High inventory is the factor causing the value of pangasius exports to this market to continuously decline since the beginning of this year. Accumulated over the first 9 months of 2023, pangasius exports to the US reached USD 207 million, a decrease of 54% compared to the same period in 2022.

In addition, the CPTPP market narrowed its decline to 4% in September when export turnover reached USD 21 million. This is also the lowest decrease of this market since the beginning of the year. However, several markets in the CPTPP bloc still gained a 10% - 70% growth such as Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, etc.

According to VASEP, in September, pangasius exports to several main markets showed signs of recovery after a long period of decline. This is a positive signal in the context that most economies in the world have low growth rates due to inflation, declining aggregate demand, central banks tightening monetary policies, political conflicts, etc.

Accumulated over the first nine months of 2023, pangasius export turnover reached nearly USD 1.4 billion, a decrease of 31% over the same period last year. VASEP expects that the recovery momentum from the end of the third quarter will support pangasius exports in the fourth quarter.

Kylie Nguyen