Vietnam earned 806 million USD from seafood exports in the first
two months of this year, marking a year-on-year rise of 3 percent.
But in February, the figure hit nearly 320 million USD, down 24 percent
from last year. Areas that experienced heavy revenue losses included tra
fish, down 32 percent to 100 million USD, shrimp (96 million USD),
cuttlefish and octopus (26 million USD), recording decreases of 31
percent and 18 percent respectively.
According to
industry insiders, poor access to capital and raw materials will
continue to impact on production and exports, especially shrimp and tra
fish.
Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural
Development Vu Van Tam asked localities to expand and monitor the
market, and promptly clear challenges facing businesses to increase
production and trade.
He also asked firms to organise trade promotion activities at home and abroad, and register their trademarks.
Meanwhile, businesses suggested the sector lower indirect and service costs as input and transport fees are increasing.
The Vietnam Association of Seafood Export and Processing reported that
the US remains Vietnam ’s top importer of seafood, with a total
share of 16.96 percent. It was followed by Japan and the Republic
of Korea with 16.96 percent and 15.3 percent respectively.-VNA