[SafeSeafood - 12/04/2009 04:20 PM]

According to the statistical data of Vietnam Customs, by mid of October 2009, Viet Nam earned more than US$1 billion from Pangasius exports. It was a promising signal for the country’s Pangasius industry in the context of squeezing consuming market and unstable source of raw material.

While Pangasius exports to some key markets experienced marked drops due to technical barriers and other factors, Pangasius succeeded in gaining strong footholds in the U.S. and Mexico.

In the first half of October 2009, Pangasius exports to the U.S. amounted to US$6.331 million, an increase of nearly 75 percent compared to the same period last year, pushing the total Pangasius export value to this market by the middle of October 2009 to US$102 million, and making the U.S. the largest importer of Vietnamese Pangasius, surpassing Spain.

The U.S. is expected to be the biggest market of Viet Nam Pangasius in the months ahead given the fact that Pangasius exports to this market by the mid of October 2009 rose 63.9 percent in volume and 63.3 percent in value compared to the same period 2008.

Besides the U.S., Mexico is also emerging as a potential market for Viet Nam Pangasius. From the beginning of the year to October 15, 2009, Viet Nam Pangasius exports to Mexico came in at US$55.712 million, an increase of 19.1 percent year-on-year, and accounting for more than 5 percent of the country’s total Pangasius export value.

Currently, Mexico jumped to the 5th position in the list of Viet Nam’s Pangasius largest importers, just behind the U.S., Spain, Germany and Russia.

Pangasius exports to this market are predicted to reach more than US$70 million by the end of the year. (VietFishNews)

(Copyright by VASEP)