According to Vietnam Customs, in the second quarter of 2024, the export value of pangasius to the US market reached 95 million USD, an increase of 15% over the same period in 2023, according to the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP).

Cumulative pangasius exports to the US in the first half of this year reached nearly 160 million USD, up 14% over the same period last year. In particular, April was recorded as the month with the highest pangasius export value since the beginning of this year, with nearly 38 million USD, up 34% over the same period.

In June 2024, the US imported more than 26 million USD worth of frozen pangasius fillets from Vietnam, up 20% compared to June 2023. In the first half of this year, this market consumed more than 156 million USD of this product, up 13% over the same period last year, accounting for 98% of the proportion. Some Vietnamese pangasius products favored by US consumers include: frozen pangasius fillets; frozen pangasius slices/pieces; frozen breaded pangasius; puffed pangasius jerky, fried pangasius skin to the US market.

Notably, in the first 6 months of 2024, value-added pangasius exports to the US also grew impressively, with a value of nearly 2 million USD, an 8-fold increase over the same period in 2023, accounting for 1% of the proportion. Of which, April 2024 recorded the strongest growth over the same period, nearly 70,000 times higher, and June 2024 was the month Vietnam exported the most value-added pangasius to the US since the beginning of this year, a 7-fold increase compared to June 2023.

Value-added pangasius exports to the US grow impressively

The US is the second largest market for pangasius after China and Hong Kong (China). Following the growth momentum in the first quarter of 2024, orders increased significantly in the second quarter of 2024, along with the gradually decreasing inventory in the US market in 2023, the average export price of pangasius to the US has also gradually recovered.

The average export price of pangasius to the US in the first half of this year has tended to increase month by month. In June 2024, the average export price of Vietnamese pangasius to the US was at 2.99 USD/kg - the highest level since the beginning of 2024.

US consumers are increasing their demand for whitefish products, especially pangasius from Vietnam. Pangasius exports to the US in the first 6 months of this year have shown many positive signs after continuously declining in 2023. In addition, the fact that whitefish supplies to the US are decreasing in the context of scarcity of other whitefish products such as tilapia is also a positive sign for Vietnamese pangasius exports to the US market.