Vietnam seafood exporters suspend Russia catfish shipments

The shippers said their Russian buyers declined to pay for their orders because of the plunge in the ruble to a record low, while payments through their banks are at a virtual standstill because of the sanctions.

Enterprises have temporarily stopped signing pangasius export orders to Russia, and shipping lines have also stopped accepting shipping containers to the country, according to the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP).  

Vietnam, the third-largest exporter of white fish to Russia last year behind Argentina and China, shipped catfish worth $32.5 million, a jump of 72.5 percent from a year earlier. Shipments to Russia in January dropped 30 percent from a year earlier to $2.18 million. 

Meanwhile, pangasius exports increased the most in other large markets, accumulated in the first 2 months of the year, pangasius sales reached $384 million, up 93 percent. 

Currently, the price of raw pangasius in the Mekong Delta has increased to VND32,000/kg due to scarcity.

Vietnam aims to produce about 1.6-1.7 million tons of commercial pangasius in 2022 while export turnover could reach over $1.6 billion, said Nhu Van Can, Director of the Aquaculture Department, Directorate of Fisheries at the Conference on implementing the development plan of the pangasius industry in 2022 organized by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development on February 25.

It is forecasted that the export price of pangasius to all markets will increase, so the export value of pangasius will increase 20-25 percent compared to 2021 and pangasius export price is forecasted to increase by about 5%.