Vietnam sees seafood exports surge rather than plummet
HANOi: Unstable US tariff policies is causing Vietnam's seafood exports to surge rather than plummet in the first half of the year.
Seafood exports turnover to the United States reached US$905mil in the first six months of the year, marking an impressive growth rate of 17.5%.
Le Hang, deputy general secretary of the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers, said that the growth momentum mainly came from businesses rushing to fulfil orders in May, aiming to complete transactions before the United States' scheduled retaliatory tariffs on July 9.
This short-term acceleration is clearly reflected in monthly data. After stable growth in March and April, exports to the United States surged by 61% month-on-month in May.
Immediately afterwards, as the tariff deadline approached and a 'wait and see' mentality prevailed, exports suddenly dropped sharply in June, by nearly 18% year-on-year.
The three main product groups including shrimp, pangasius and tuna, continued to lead, accounting for 77% of total turnover with a value of more than US$700mil.
A notable development was the shift in market rankings.
The leading market for many years, the United States now accounts for only 17% of the market share, losing its top position to China, which imported US$1.1bil of Vietnamese seafood, a sharp increase of 45% compared to the same period last year.
'This is considered an inevitable consequence of an unstable trade environment due to US tariff policies,' Hang said.
'Since April this year, the Trump administration has continuously used retaliatory tariffs as a negotiating tool, issuing a series of announcements and rapid changes in tariff rates, implementation times and affected parties.'
Initially, the tariff roadmap was set for July 9, but just before that date, Trump unexpectedly announced a postponement to August 1. — Viet Nam News/ANN
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