Workers at Vinh Hoan Corp process seafood for export. The export of tra fish to China and Hong Kong in the first half of February this year suffered a sharp plunge. VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI – Exports of tra fish (pangasius) to China and Hong Kong in the first half of February this year suffered a sharp plunge, according to a report released by the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP).

The turnover of Vietnamese tra fish exported to China hit US$13.55 million, down 38.6 per cent over the same period last year.

The figure accounted for 8.5 per cent of Việt Nam’s total outbound sales of the fish during the period. The export value to Hong Kong also fell by 40.5 per cent.

VASEP’s market analysts attributed the unexpected decline to many difficulties, including the COVID-19 pandemic and measures used to slow the spread of the virus.

Early last year, seafood processing factories in China were impacted by the pandemic, which caused interruptions in trade, affecting the export volume of tra fish to this market.   

Early in the third quarter last year, trade between Việt Nam and China increased again ahead of China's National Day in October. In October last year, the price of frozen tra fish fillets exported to China suddenly surged to $2.52 per kg.

However, China then stepped up efforts at border gates to contain the spread of the coronavirus through imported frozen products, affecting Việt Nam’s tra fish exports.

According to VASEP, since December last year, Guangxi Province which borders four provinces of Việt Nam including Quảng Ninh, Lạng Sơn, Cao Bằng, and Hà Giang has conducted surveillance, disinfection and origin traceability measures to strengthen control of all consignments of frozen seafood imports.

Frozen seafood shipments from Việt Nam, including tra fish fillets, need a certificate of food testing, certificate of quarantine, certificate of disinfection and certificate origin traceability and a negative COVID-19 test.

Frozen seafood goods imported to Guangxi via border gates and seaports must be sent to local centralised monitoring warehouses for a nucleic acid test, sterilisation and origin traceability control.

These extra requirement shave slowed exports.

Việt Nam exports a diverse range of tra fish products to China including frozen fillets, frozen tra fish stomach, fried/dried fish bladder, frozen whole tra fish and frozen tra fish belly, among others.

Last year, 145 seafood companies exported tra fish to the Chinese market and 40 others shipped their tra fish to Hong Kong. - VNS