Currently, Thailand and Vietnam are sharing the market share in Egypt for tuna.
Since 2023, Vietnam’s tuna exports to Egypt have been continuously growing. According to statistics from the Vietnam Customs, in the first four months of 2025, tuna exports to this market reached nearly 4 million USD, an increase of 72% compared to the same period in 2024.
Among the tuna products exported by Vietnam to this market, canned tuna is the main product, accounting for more than 82% of the total export turnover. The rest includes other processed tuna and frozen tuna meat/loins.
According to the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), for canned tuna products, Thailand is the main supplier to Egypt. However, many Egyptian importers are seeking other partners, including Vietnam, to avoid supply dependency. This is a good opportunity for Vietnamese businesses to enter this market.
Tuna exports to Egypt have increased sharply by 72%.
Vietnam has become the world’s fifth-largest tuna exporter in terms of value, following Thailand, Ecuador, Spain, and China. Not only Egypt, but currently the tuna supply chain in Southeast Asia is shifting to Vietnam instead of just Thailand as before.
In the past five years (2020–2024), Vietnam’s tuna exports have increased by 52%, from 649 million USD in 2020 to 989 million USD in 2024. Tuna from Vietnam has been exported to over 110 markets worldwide. Among them, the USA, EU, Middle East, and CPTPP countries are the four largest consumers of Vietnamese tuna, accounting for 82-86% of the total export value.
Experts forecast that 2025 will be a challenging year for Vietnam’s tuna. Specifically, Vietnamese tuna exports are facing significant challenges from major import markets such as the EU and the US.
In addition, Egypt has gradually resolved the prolonged foreign currency shortage crisis over the past two years, leading to an increase in the country’s imports, creating favorable conditions for Vietnamese businesses.
Currently, Egypt is the second-largest economy in the African region, with a GDP of 347.59 billion USD (data from the International Monetary Fund published in April 2024), and leads Africa in attracting FDI. Egypt is also Vietnam’s largest trade partner and market in the North African region.
Since the beginning of this year, the governments of the two countries have held numerous discussions and have agreed to actively consider opening up markets and creating favorable conditions for each country’s strong export items, aiming to enhance trade volume and sustainable trade cooperation. This is to encourage businesses from both sides to survey the market and exchange investment cooperation opportunities. In 2023, the bilateral trade volume between the two countries reached 486.6 million USD, of which Vietnam exported 432 million USD to Egypt, mainly consisting of agricultural and fishery products, textiles, and garments.
In the context of major export markets like the US and EU facing many obstacles, Egypt is a promising option for businesses to increase tuna exports. However, not only Vietnam but also many other countries are choosing Egypt as a new destination, such as China. Therefore, competition in this market will increase in the near future, and businesses need to proactively seize the opportunity to enter this market.