September 30, 2005

Vietnamese seafood exports rise by 14.5 percent

Vietnam's seafood exports rose to US$1.9 billion in the first nine months this year, an increase of 14.5 percent from the same period last year, according to the country's Ministry of Fisheries.

The local fisheries sector has so far this year produced 2.6 million tonnes of products, with 1.2 million tonnes from aquaculture.

Shrimp farmers suffered minimal losses with shrimp production and prices remaining stable despite the heavy rains and storms that had besieged the industry. For the local tra and basa catfish, the drop in overseas demand was more than made up for by a strong local demand.

This year, Vietnam's Ministry of Fisheries hopes to export US$2.5 billion worth of aquaculture products.