Leveraging Trade Preferences: Evaluating the Impact of the EVFTA on Vietnam’s Seafood Exports to the EU

Linh Thi Phuong Nguyen () and Anh Tue Nguyen
Additional contact information
Linh Thi Phuong Nguyen: Phenikaa University, Phenikaa School of Economics
Anh Tue Nguyen: VNU University of Economics and Business

A chapter in Entrepreneurship and Human-Centric Business Strategies for Social and Economic Resilience, 2026, pp 1031-1045 from Springer

Abstract: Abstract The European Union-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) marks a significant step in Vietnam’s economic integration, with fisheries being one of the most directly affected export sectors. While earlier studies have examined its potential benefits, most relied on pre-2020 aggregated data and thus provide limited insights into post-COVID trade dynamics. This study evaluates the static trade effects of the EVFTA on Vietnam’s fishery exports to the European Union, focusing on the mechanisms of trade creation and trade diversion. Using the WITS–SMART partial equilibrium model with post-2020 disaggregated data at the six-digit HS level, the analysis offers a more refined perspective on the distribution of gains across product categories and EU member states. The findings suggest that EVFTA tariff liberalization strengthens Vietnam’s competitiveness in high-value-added processed fishery products, while generating moderate trade diversion as Vietnam replaces some non-EVFTA suppliers. Compared with earlier projections, the updated results highlight the moderating effects of COVID-19 and the persistence of non-tariff barriers in shaping export performance. By extending previous SMART-based assessments with granular, up-to-date data, this study contributes new evidence to the literature on free trade agreements and trade policy evaluation. From a policy perspective, the results underline the importance of investing in value-added processing, ensuring compliance with EU sanitary and traceability standards, and accelerating institutional reforms such as addressing the IUU “yellow card” to fully capitalize on the EVFTA’s opportunities.

Keywords: EVFTA; Fishery exports; Trade creation; Trade diversion; WITS-SMART model (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

There are no downloads for this item, see the EconPapers FAQ for hints about obtaining it.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:spr:prbchp:978-981-95-6415-6_65

Ordering information: This item can be ordered from
http://www.springer.com/9789819564156

DOI: 10.1007/978-981-95-6415-6_65

Access Statistics for this chapter

More chapters in Springer Proceedings in Business and Economics from Springer
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().