Ecuador was the top exporter of shrimp to the E.U. and China for the first eight months of 2025, Shrimp Insights OwnerWillem van der Pijl has reported.
According to Shrimp Insights China imported less shrimp than usual in early 2025, but strong numbers in the summer months brought the yearly average back to normal. The country’s total imports for the first eight months of the year amounting to 605,868 MT (metric tons), a 1 percent decline year over year.
Between January and August, Chinese imports of shrimp totaled USD 3.17 billion (CNY 22.57 billion; EUR 2.70 billion), a 7 percent increase year over year.
Ecuador continued to be a dominant supplier to China, and despite China’s slight decline in shrimp imports Ecuador exported 454,908 MT of shrimp in the period, a 1 percent year over year increase.
India was the next largest exporter to China, with a total of 86,725 MT in the first eight months of the year, a 9 percent drop from the previous year.
Thailand increased its exports to China, with a total of 16,542 MT, a 15 percent increase year over year.
Another top source of shrimp in China, Argentina, had “volatile” supply patterns according to van der Pijl, with multiple three-figure percentage jumps in supply that saw its shipments of shrimp to China increase by 476 percent in March while they declind in other months. For the full period through August 2025 Argentina’s exports came in at 13,101 MT, an overall increase of 35 percent year over year.
Indonesia exported 7,599 MT to China between January and August. Though the amount was “relatively small,” van der Pijl noted that exports were up 40 percent year over year.
E.U. imports in the first eight months of the year were also led by Ecuador, which exported 139,078 MT total, a 41 percent year over year increase. India saw a 25 percent year over year increase, with a January to August total of 31,077 MT. Vietnam also increased its exports to the E.U. with 29,787 MT, an 18 percent increase from the same period in 2024. Bangladesh only exported 6,932 MT to the E.U. by the end of August, but saw rapid growth, with a 29 percent improvement year over year.
Venezuela, however, saw a 44 percent year over year decline in its exports to the E.U., with a total of 13,431 MT between January and August.
In an update on Indian exports, in which the most recent totals were from July, van der Pijl reported a 2 percent year-over-year increase, with exports totaling 414,729 MT for the first seven months of 2025.
Export value out of India increased by 12 percent year over year, amounting to a total of USD 2.94 billion (EUR 2.50 billion).
Shrimp Insights noted that while the U.S. remained India's leading shrimp customer in July, with 27,517 MT, that amount constituted a 10-percent decline from the previous year's imports. Overall, however, exports to the U.S. between January and July totaled 179,935 MT, a 9 percent increase year over year.
India increased its exports to China by 5 percent in July to 12,092 MT, but exports to the nation so far in 2025 fell by 6 percent year over year between January and July, totaling 77,169 MT.
Indian exports to the E.U. grew the most rapidly, increasing 27 percent year over year, with 58,287 MT in total volume between January and July.
