Vietnamese shrimp make it big in America

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Despite a modest dip of 1.5 percent in June, the trade consistently climbed, every month.

U.S. anti-dumping duties rose from 0.9 to 4.8 percent this September, but shrimp exports hit an $85 million this month.

During the first nine months of the year, Americans took in over half a billion USD of Vietnamese shrimp -- a 15.2 percent year-on-year rise. 

The price and demand for shrimp both surged due to low supply in India, Indonesia, Ecuador and Thailand, according to VASEP. The organization blamed the scarcity of shrimp stocks on climate change.

In addition, American consumers also took in about a fifth of Vietnam's overall seafood exports.

However, due to high anti-dumping duties and strict inspection practices, VASEP expects to log a modest export growth of 3.3 percent (about $3 billion) by the end of the year.

By October, Vietnam's total seafood exports had hit $6 billion, up six percent from 2015, according to the latest data from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. 

Vietnamese seafood exporters expect to benefit from a free trade agreement with the Eurasian Economic Union, which goes into effect this month.