The EU has been one of the largest consumers of Vietnamese pangasius over the past 10 years. However, in the past 5 years, data from Vietnam Customs shows that the EU has been gradually reducing its imports of pangasius from Vietnam.

In 2015, the EU ranked 2nd in the list of the largest importers of Vietnamese pangasius, after the US, with an export turnover of 285 million USD. Ten years later, in 2024, this market dropped to 4th place and ceded its higher ranking to China & HK, the US, and CPTPP. The total export turnover of pangasius to the EU in 2024 reached 161 million USD, down 5% compared to 2023, and down 44% compared to 2015.

This decline was seen in most product segments. With VAT pangasius, in 2015, the EU imported more than 8 million USD from Vietnam. Ten years later, in 2024, this market imported only over 3.5 million USD of VAT pangasius products from Vietnam, a slight increase of 3% compared to 2023. In the past 10 years, 2023 witnessed the "gloomiest" year of VAT pangasius exports to the EU and 2017 was recorded as the year of VAT pangasius exports to the EU reaching the highest level.

Exports of other dried and frozen pangasius products (whole, cut into pieces, etc.) to the EU in 2024 increased by 2% compared to 2023. In the past 10 years, since 2015, exports of these products to the EU in 2022 are considered to have reached the highest value, with nearly 10 million USD, nearly double that of 2021, then to 2024. Although the increase is not high, this is also a quite positive result that the pangasius export industry received in 2024.

Frozen pangasius fillets are still the main product of Vietnamese pangasius exported to the EU. Export turnover is largely dominated by the export value of this product. In 2015, frozen pangasius fillet exports to the EU reached more than 285 million USD, by 2024, this value was only more than 165 million USD.

So what are the results for pangasius exports to the EU in 2025? The economy in 2025 is likened to the image of a person recovering from Covid. Resistance is still weak and can easily be defeated by headwinds - risk factors that may come in 2025. The world economy still faces many challenges. Conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, political deadlock in Germany and France, and doubts about the Chinese economy further obscure the picture. Increased conflicts can disrupt energy markets, affect confidence and growth, hinder trade growth, and cause sudden adjustments in financial markets.

The EU market bloc, which concentrates many countries that are important customers of Vietnamese pangasius, is unlikely to avoid these impacts. However, it is still too early to conclude or make accurate forecasts about consumer demand in this market block, because it depends on many factors, including the above objective reasons and subjective impacts from prices.

Source: VASEP