According to statistics from Vietnam Customs, after a sharp decrease of 51% in May 2023, Vietnam's tuna exports to the UK continued to increase in the following 2 months. This growth has contributed to raising the total export turnover to the UK in the first 7 months of 2023 to 77% higher than the same period in 2022, reaching more than 4.5 million USD.

Currently, the UK imports a lot of fresh and frozen tuna products from Vietnam, accounting for 99% of total export turnover. Compared to the same period, Vietnam's exports of these products to the UK increased by 98%. Meanwhile, exports of processed and canned tuna decreased.

According to the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), in the UK market, Vietnam is the 13th largest source of tuna, while Ecuador, Mauritius and Seychelles are leading this market. However, this year due to the El Niño phenomenon, rainfall in Panama decreased. Drought is making it difficult to transport goods from South American countries, including Ecuador, to European countries through the Panama Canal. Shipping companies must choose alternative routes. The Strait of Magellan, at the tip of South America, is a natural waterway but is about 7,000 km from the Panama Canal and almost 6,000 km from the Port of Manta, so is a huge detour for container ships. Therefore, it can be said that this is an opportunity for Asian countries, including Vietnam, to increase tuna exports to European countries, including the UK.

VASEP also acknowledged that, in the context of high inflation, the increase in raw tuna prices causes the demand for tuna in many markets to decline. That's why advantages from free trade agreements like UKVFTA are creating competitiveness for Vietnamese tuna products in markets like the UK.

In addition, according to the latest information from the Government newspaper, on July 16, the UK signed an agreement and officially became the 12th member of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership. Pacific (CPTPP).

Britain's accession is expected to boost trade between this country and members of the CPTPP bloc, including Vietnam. Along with the trade agreement between Vietnam - UK (UKVFTA), incentives from CPTPP will open up opportunities for Vietnamese seafood products to enter the UK market, including tuna.

According to VASEP's forecast, Vietnam's tuna exports to the UK in the last months of the year will continue to be positive.

Minh Toan