Price summary                                                                   

 

 

Prices of giant tiger prawn in Ca Mau  (Expressed in VND1,000/kg)
Category (pcs/kg)	Week 1	Week 2	Week 3	Week 4
20	285	286	285	285
30	260	275	280	280
40	224	228	234	234
Prices of whiteleg shrimp in Ca Mau  (expressed in VND1,000/kg)
Category (pcs/kg)	Week 1	Week 2	Week 3	Week 4
100	137	140	142	142
80	137	138	145	147
* VND1, 000 = US$0.044 as of Feb Source: Vasep (Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporter & Producer)

                                                                                                                        

 

For the first days of February until now, the price of shrimp in the Mekong Delta had increased significantly due to shrimp producers and exporters returning to work after the Tet holiday. Specifically, in the key farming areas such as Kien Giang, Ca Mau, Soc Trang, the price of tiger giant prawn size 30 pcs per kilo was bought from VND260,000 to VND280,000 per kilo (US$11.42-12.29), an increase of VND20,000 (US$0.88) per kilo than before Tet holiday. Size 40 pcs per kilo was priced from VND224, 000 (US$9.83) to VND234, 000 (US$10.27) per kilo, an increase of VND10,000 (US$0.44) per kilo. White leg shrimp size 80 pcs per kilo was priced from VND 137,000 (US$ 6.01) to VND147,000 (US$6.45) per kilo, an increase of VND10,000 to VND 15,000 (US$0.44-0.66) per kilo compared with the previous month. Size 100 pcs per kilo was priced from VND137, 000 (US$ 6.01) to VND142,000 (US$ 6.23) per kilo.

 

This is a good sign for shrimp industry in the beginning of the year which encourage farmers to invest more for their farms with the hope of more profit. 

 

 

 

The supply of shrimp is scarce, causing shrimp prices to spike higher than the offering price of exports.

 

Besides, many shrimp import markets started encouraging technical barriers to protect domestic producers.

 

In addition to technical barriers, shrimp exports in 2017 continue to be subjected to intense competition from rivals in the main market as well as high anti-dumping duty in the US market. These cause difficulties for Vietnam's shrimp exports in the first months of 2017, making it challenging to determine the shrimp export target this year.

 

To achieve the target of US$3.4 billion in 2017 and US$10 billion by 2025, the shrimp industry will need to work harder in the coming years.

 

As forecasted, the price of shrimp will be stable at a high level or increased due to the beginning of the harvest and it will take three more months to be collected.

 

As a rule, shrimp price will be high in about two months before and after the Tet holiday as the global demand will increase during this time. However, this is also an unfavourable period for the shrimp industry due to bad weather, and shrimps tend to suffer illness easily.

 

These cause shrimp capacity and quality not meeting requirements. The scarcity of this year is expected to be more difficult due to the rising demand from the Chinese market. As a result, the export to this market is increasing.

 

Enterprises expect the shrimp price to be better by May 2017 when the harvest comes.

 

The Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers forecasts that shrimp exports in 2017 will hit US$3.4 billion, an increase of 9% year-on-year. White leg shrimp value will reach US$2 billion, up 8%, and tiger giant prawn will reach US$900 million, up 2%. According to the association, shrimp exports to EU should be stable. Vietnam can also diversify exports to Japan, South Korea and China while also maintaining stability in the US market.