India gained less value from its shrimp exports in August, as its sales to most of its major markets dropped compared to a year ago, according to the latest data released by India’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
India’s August shrimp exports were worth USD 372.5 million (EUR 319.4 million), down 25.1 percent from the same month in 2019 and 7.2 percent from July.
The United States remained the largest buyer of shrimp from India in terms of value, with sales reaching USD 208.7 million (EUR 179 million) in August. But that total was down 20.4 percent year-on-year.
Japan was the second-largest destination in the month by value, buying shrimp worth USD 31.84 million (EUR 27.3 million), down 26.6 percent from a year earlier.
India's shrimp exports to China – the second-largest buyer of Indian shrimp last year – contracted to USD 23.46 million (EUR 20 million) in the month, a decline of 69.6 percent from August 2019.
Meanwhile, the value of India's shrimp exports to Vietnam increased significantly to USD 20.7 million (EUR 17.8 million) in August, up 97.9 percent year-on-year.
In the first eight months of 2020, India exported shrimp worth USD 2.6 billion (EUR 2.2 billion), 13.3 percent lower year-on-year. The value of the exports to Japan in the period saw a minor growth of 0.9 percent to USD 203.4 million (EUR 174.4 million) while sales to most other main markets shrank.
The value of the exports to the three other leading destinations all decreased, with USD 1.3 billion (EUR 1.1 billion) to the U.S., 11.1 percent lower year-on-year; USD 363.7 million (EUR 312 million) to China, down 31.4 percent from a year ago; and USD 131.6 million (EUR 112.9 million) to Vietnam, down 3 percent from the same period last year.
India’s seafood exports are expected to fall sharply in this fiscal year due to lower global demand resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.
The decline in demand from major markets, including the U.S. and China, could see seafood exports from India decrease by 25 percent in the current fiscal year from USD 6.7 billion (EUR 5.7 billion) in the last fiscal year, which ended on 31 March. The slump in shrimp exports in this fiscal year is likely to be the worst on record for India.
Photo courtesy of Sergey Nepsha/Shutterstock
