U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade war has sent seafood companies scrambling to move production and secure new trade partners as they desperately seek to avoid the brunt of new tariffs.
“We’re living in a brave new world,” Matthew Latimer, managing director and general counsel of ACT Capital Advisors, said during a panel at Seafood Expo Global, which took place from 6 to 8 May in Barcelona Spain. “The recent round of trade restrictions and tariffs that were announced in the United States have triggered a scramble among seafood suppliers and distributors and wholesalers and retailers to constantly adapt – maybe on a daily basis – to an ever-changing trade environment. Geopolitical conflicts have disrupted supply chains, consumptions trends, and human lives, and then economic and environmental and regulatory changes have put pressure on operators to deliver sustainable, high quality, desirable products, all while navigating increased market complexity.”
“In other words, for the seafood industry, this is just another day at the office,” he said.
Trump made imposing tariffs a key part of his presidential campaign, and since taking office he has moved quickly to enact financial barriers on imported goods. On 2 April, Trump announced a minimum 10 percent tariff on all imported goods, with a range of higher tariffs on goods from 57 countries. The announcement, dubbed “Liberation Day” by the president, sparked a panic in the market, and Trump announced a 90-day pause before the higher tariffs go into effect. The minimum 10 percent tariff, however, remains in place, and tariffs on China have skyrocketed.
According to ACT Capital Advisors Managing Director Brad Bodenman, who serves as co-chair of the firm’s Seafood Sector Advisory Practice, importers in the U.S. are scurrying to rearrange their supply chains to source from countries that will only have the lower 10 percent minimum tariff applied.
“Those are the people you want to be doing business with, not the ones you currently have,” Bodenman said.
However, the number of exporters operating in lower-tariffed nations are limited …
