Hanoi (VNA)– Vietnam’s tuna export revenue is likely to reach the target of 500 millionUSD in 2018 as the figure already hit 351 million USD in the first seven monthsof this year, while growth has been seen in the majority of markets.

According to theVietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), in July, earningsfrom tuna export were estimated at 48.4 million USD. The major eight Vietnamesetuna importers were the US, the EU, Israel, ASEAN, Japan, Canada, Mexico andChina.

VASEP GeneralSecretary Truong Dinh Hoe said that September is normally the peak season oftuna selling when importers often strengthen tuna buying, therefore, the goalof 500 million USD of exports for the whole year is feasible.

Hoe said that amongthe top three markets of Vietnamese tuna, decrease was only seen in the US.Specifically, Vietnam shipped 116.3 million USD worth of tuna to the US in thefirst seven months of 2018, down 8.9 percent year on year. Meanwhile, a rise of23.7 percent was seen in the EU market to 82.71 million USD, and a surge of 55.7percent in the Israeli market to 42.35 million USD, boosted by the shipment ofcanned tuna which almost doubled to 29 million USD in the first half of theyear.

Commenting on theJapanese market, Hoe said that Japan had dropped to the fifth position from oneof the top two importers of Vietnamese tuna, explaining that Japan’s demandmight decrease or it has found another source of supply at more reasonableprices. Vietnam had only 3 percent of the market share in Japan, while that ofThailand is 58 percent, Indonesia, 19 percent, and the Philippines, 17 percent.

However, Vietnam’stuna exports to Japan have still increased through months, he said. In thefirst seven months of 2018, Japan spent 15.87 million USD on Vietnamese tuna,up 25 percent year on year.

At the same time, tunaimport of the US rose continuously in the first six months of 2018, with upturnseen in imports of canned processed tuna, and frozen tuna fillets.

Statistics from the USside showed that the country spent 902 million USD on tuna products worth inthe first half of 2018, up 17 percent compared to the same period in 2017.

The top five tunasuppliers of the US, counting by volume, were Thailand, China, Indonesia,Vietnam and Ecuador.

Notably, China andVietnam have changed place to take the lead in supplying tuna to the US.Accounting for 70 percent of total canned tuna import of the US, China hasbecome the second largest supplier of the US, making it a weighty competitor ofThailand and Vietnam.

Due to the escalatingUS-China trade war, in this September, the import tax rate for fresh and frozentuna of China in the US will increase sharply, creating favourable conditionsfor other countries to increase their tuna export to the market. But the chancehas yet to be clear for export of canned products.

Hoe asserted thathigher demand of tuna in festive season at the end of the year will pushimporters’ buying. However, he was worried of the stability of supply capacity ofVietnam’s tuna sector, as along with domestically caught tuna, the country hasstill had to import the product as material for export.-VNA