Vietnam Expects Strong Potential in Tuna Export in 2009
Vietnam may see a strong potential in exporting tuna this year even though the outlook for the country’s seafood exports is forecast to be dismal this year due to a plunge in global consumption demand, the Saigon Times Daily reported, citing local exporters.
The Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (Vasep) said demand for tunas would grow strongly in key foreign markets such as the European Union, Japan, Israel and the United States.
While tunas are in great demand, the output in major exporting countries is dwindling, said the association.
In 2008, 84 Vietnamese companies exported 53,000 tons of tuna worth US$189 million, up 25 per cent against 2007.
The key importers were the EU with around US$63 million, the U.S. with nearly US$55 million and Japan with US$23 million. Israel is a new export market for Vietnamese companies but its tuna imports from Vietnam last year grew 191 per cent year-on-year to US$6.4 million.
The nationwide fleet of tuna fishing boats, mostly in south-central Vietnam like Binh Dinh, Phu Yen and Khanh Hoa provinces, numbers more than 1,500.
The country’s 2008 seafood outbound sales rose 20 per cent from the previous year to US$4.5 billion, with tunas classified as the seafood industry’s fourth biggest forex earner after tiger shrimp, catfish and squid/octopus. (Saigon Times Daily)
Vietnamese
