Shrimp accounts for over 60 pct of Vietnamese seafood exports to China

Vietnam's shrimp accounted for a large proportion of over 60 percent in Vietnamese seafood export turnover to China in 2013, according to Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP).

The association said on its website on Monday that in the first 11 months of 2013, Vietnam exported some 517 million US dollars worth of seafood products to China, an increase of 38.7 percent over the same period in 2012. Among the seafood products exported to China, shrimp accounted for some 68 percent, worth over 349 million US dollars, up 53.7 percent year-on-year.

VASEP said the price of shrimp exported to China remained quite stable in recent years. During 2000-2006 period, shrimp export price increased from $ 6.53 to a peak of $ 8.68 per kilogram in 2002, then declined.

During 2006-2012, price of shrimp exported to China ranged from $7.5-8.5 per kilogram, and is expected to increase in the coming years, said VASEP.

Shrimp export to China is forecast to continue the increasing trend as changing lifestyle and higher income have helped boosting demand for seafood consumption in the country, especially high- quality products, assessed VASEP.