Seafood exporter Hung Vuong to buy stake in Russian company Hung Vuong Corporation, a Vietnamese major pangasius fish exporter, has announced its plan to buy a 51 percent stake in a distributor in Russia for US$15 million. The plan, announced at the company's shareholder meeting on Friday, is expected to help Hung Vuong access Russian Fish Company's distribution network, which accounts for 5 percent of Russia's fish market. A subsidiary of Russia Aquaculture Company, Russian Fish now has 19 branches and 13 representative offices around Russia, CEO Duong Ngoc Minh said. Reuters reported last Thursday that Russia Aquaculture will sell 100 percent of its distribution arm to Vietnamese-Russian venture RKK Holding, in which Hung Vuong owns a 51 percent stake. Vietnam's pangasius exporters have been seeing declines in their sales, mainly due to harsh competition in major markets, including the EU and the US, the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers said in a report last week. Revenues from most of its big buyers fell 4.2-42.2 percent year on year in the January-November period last year, the association said, forecasting the country's pangasius exports will fall 5 percent this year. By Hong Suong, Thanh Nien News