Dominate big cities
According to Truong Dinh Hoe, General Secretary of Vietnam
Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), Vietnam
previously exported whole tra fish to some provinces in the southern
border of China, but now tra fish fillet products are present in major
cities such as Beijing, Shanghai and Dalian. Chinese demand for tra fish
products will be even higher in the coming time.
The increasing popularity of Vietnamese tra fish fillets in China
occurs at an appropriate time. Vietnamese tra fish exporters are subject
to a higher anti-dumping tax rate than previous announcement of the US
Department of Commerce (DOC). This ruling creates a complicated scenario
for Vietnamese exporters at that time, those who were not sure of the
tax rate that the US would impose on Chinese tilapia export products.
Currently, domestic tra fish exporters are benefiting from the US -
China trade war with big importers shifting to import Vietnamese tra
fish products, this fish has been favored and accepted by American
consumers.
In the last 10 years, China has emerged as a market specializing in
importing seafood instead of exporting as before. According to VASEP,
the Chinese market has a great opportunity but still has many potential
risks because China is tightening inspection on food safety and strictly
control cross border trade.
China's seafood import demand has increased steadily every year with
over 3 million ton per year. Chinese consumers prefer imported products
and natural exploitation due to food safety concerns. In particular,
they are willing to spend money to buy products that are accepted by the
US and European markets. Typically, Vietnamese tra fish products have
increased consumption in China since being accepted at the US market
Leading export of tra fish
Vietnam is the largest tra fish producer in the world, with output
reaching 1.25 million in 2017 and increasing to 1.33 million tons in
2018. India is the second largest exporter with a production of 540,000
tons in 2018, followed by Bangladesh with 455,000 tons and Indonesia
with 110,000 tons.
China is rapidly catching up with the EU as the world's largest
seafood importer. This country imported nearly 5 million tons of seafood
in 2018, according to Rabobank. “Tra fish is a really good choice for
Chinese customers who are looking for whitefish products” - Mr. Truong
Dinh Hoe said. One of the challenges that Vietnamese tra fish exporters
have to overcome is to create trust for Chinese customers to buy fillets
instead of whole tra fish. According to World Bank data, China's GDP
per capita increased from US$ 3,471 in 2008 to US$ 8,827 in 2017.
Meanwhile, Vietnam's per capita GDP increased from US$ 1,143 to US$
2,342 at the same period. This shows that Vietnam's labor costs are now
much cheaper than China. This means that Vietnamese tra fish enterprises
are selling fish at a more competitive price to the Chinese market.
Currently, seafood export to China is conveniently boosted with low
expense. Almost all seafood export enterprises in the South of Vietnam
have moved from road freight transport to sea transport. Moreover, while
cross border trade by road freight transport hides many risks for
exporters, official export by sea transport helps export enterprises
limit payment risks, assure product quality and save costs.
In 2019, it will be an opportunity for enterprises to expand exports
by sea transport to major cities of China to improve the quality and
quantity of official export. Seafood exports to the Chinese market are
forecast to reach US$ 1.5 billion this year, of which tra fish is one of
the key products.
VIFEP ()