Ninh Thuan (VNA) – The export of the firstbatch of frozen shrimp to several European countries under the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement(EVFTA) was marked with a ceremony in the south central province of Ninh Thuanon September 11.

Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development PhungDuc Tien said tariff removal under the EVFTA is expected to create bigopportunities for Vietnam’s aquatic product exports.

Accordingly, the EU is set to eliminate tariffs on 86.5percent of Vietnam’s aquatic product exports in three years, 90.3 percent in fiveyears, and 100 percent in seven years, he said, noting that to take thisadvantage, orders for Vietnamese aquatic products since the beginning of Augusthas increased by around 10 percent compared to July.

Tien added the EVFTA, taking effect on August 1, promises abright prospect for shrimp exports to the EU in the remaining months of 2020.

In July, Vietnam earned 54.2 million USD from shrimp exportsto the EU, up 2 percent from a year earlier. The year-on-year growth continuedin August, at about 20 percent, and the upward trend is expected to besustained until the year-end although the pace is unlikely to be fast dueto COVID-19 impact, according to the deputy minister.

At the ceremony, Carsten Schittek, head of trade and economicaffairs at the EU Delegation to Vietnam, said the shipment of this batch ofbrackish-water shrimp to the EU affirmed the success of shrimp farming,processing and exporting businesses of Vietnam.

Vietnam’s fishery industry, including the shrimp sector, ishighly competitive, he noted, adding that with tariffs slashed from 12 percentto zero percent under the EVFTA, the country’s shrimp sector will become evenmore successful in gaining a bigger market share in the EU.

For his part, Truong Huu Thong, Chairman and General Directorof the Thong Thuan Co. Ltd – the shrimp exporter, said among the largestmarkets his firm is selling products to, Europe is the most stable one in termsof demand, policies and prices.

When the EVFTA came into force, orders the company receivedfrom the EU have risen sharply, he added.

According to Chairman of the Ninh Thuan People’s CommitteeLuu Xuan Vinh, frozen processed shrimp is one of the key export items of theprovince, accounting for 43.5 percent of total shipments, and over 95 percentof the local shrimp exports is contributed by the local branch of the ThongThuan company./.