Trends in fish trade
In addition to their role as a source of food and livelihoods, fisheries are, in some countries, an important source of foreign exchange. In a few cases fishery exports are essential to the existence of the economy. For example, in 2004 they accounted for more than two thirds of the total value of traded commodities in the Faeroe Islands, Greenland, Kiribati, Iceland, the Maldives, Panama and the Seychelles. In many countries there is a substantial two-way trade in fishery products. The trade surplus is significant in Latin America, Africa, China and Oceania. In 2004, 97 countries were net exporters (value of exports higher than value of imports) of fish and fishery products with Norway, Thailand, Viet Nam, Chile, Canada, Iceland, China and Indonesia reporting net export values of more than US$ 1.5 billion each and with India, Taiwan Province of China, Denmark and Peru having net exports worth between US$ 1 billion and US$ 1.5 billion each.
Fish trade has grown significantly in the last decades, enhanced by improvements in technology, transport and communication and by sustained demand. In terms of quantity, exports were reported to peak at 53 million tonnes (live weigh equivalent) in 2004, with a growth of 13 percent since 1994 and of 114 percent since 1984. However, during the period 2000-2003 the volume of fish traded was rather stagnant. The record reached in 2004 by fishery exports coincided with the impressive raise in global trade, despite sharp increase in oil prices and natural disasters. A large share of fish production enters international marketing channels, with about 38 percent (live weight equivalent) exported in 2004 in various food and feed product forms.
Low Income Food Deficit Countries (LIFDCs) play an active part in the trade of fish and fish products and, in 2004, accounted for more than 20 percent of the total value of fishery exports, with net export revenues (i.e. the total value of their exports less the total value of their imports) combined at US$ 9.4 billion. Developing countries, globally taken, accounted for 48 percent of total fishery exports in value terms and 57 percent in quantity terms (live weight equivalent) in 2004. The fishery net exports of developing countries showed a continued rising trend in the last decade, growing from US$ 4.6 billion in 1984 to US$ 20.4 billion in 2004. These figures are significantly higher than those for other agricultural commodities such as rice, coffee and tea.
Although trade among developing countries is increasing, it is still not very substantial and accounted for about 15 percent of their total exports in the period 2002-2004. Trade tends to flow from the less developed to the more developed countries. Fish products traded among industrialized countries are mostly from demersal species traded in fresh, frozen whole and fillet form; lower value pelagic species such as herring and mackerel traded in fresh and frozen form, as well as fresh and frozen salmon.
Exports of developing countries concern mainly tuna, shrimps, prawns, rock lobsters and cephalopods (octopus, squids and cuttlefishes). In addition, a large part of the world's trade in fish meal originates from developing South American countries. In the past, developing countries were involved primarily in exports of raw material for the processing industry of developed countries, while in recent years they have been more and more involved in adding value to their products. There are more and more imports of raw material for further processing and re-exporting. Many developed countries have invested in building up processing facilities in developing countries due to lower costs.
Imports of developing countries concern mainly frozen small pelagics and cured, dried and smoked fish. However, emerging markets (China Hong Kong SAR, Taiwan Province of China, Republic of Korea, Malaysia and Singapore) are increasingly importing high value commodities (rock lobster, squid, etc.) for domestic consumption.
Products derived from aquaculture production account for an increasing share of the total international trade in fishery commodities, with an estimated one fourth of the export volume. At present it is not possible to evaluate the exact amount of fish trade originating from aquaculture, since countries do not specify the origin of their production in their fishery trade statistics.
Due to fish perishability, more than 90 percent of trade of fish and fishery products consists of processed products in one form or another. Although live, fresh or chilled fish represents only a small share of world fish trade, its trade is growing, reflecting technological developments, improved logistics and increased demand.
World export values
In 2004, world exports of fish and fishery products reached a record value of US$ 71.5 billion, representing a 23 percent growth compared with 2000 and a 51 percent increase since 1994. China was again the leading exporter with US$ 6.6 billion, followed by Norway (US$ 4.1 billion), Thailand (US$ 4.0 billion), the United States (US$ 3.9 billion) and Denmark (US$ 3.6 billion).
In 2004, world imports of fish and fishery products were US$ 75.3 billion, with Japan as the largest importer (US$ 14.6 billion), followed by the United States (US$ 12.0 billion), Spain (US$ 5.2 billion) and France (US$ 4.2 billion). In 2004, only 19 percent of the world import value was by developing countries, while 74 percent of the import value was concentrated in the three main areas of Japan, the United States and the European Union.
The FAO database on fishery commodities production and trade is used for preparing the Yearbook of Fishery Statistics - Commodities presenting data series of recent years on production and foreign trade of fishery commodities for all countries and territories of the world, This yearbook also gives statistics of apparent consumption of fish and fishery products, the value and disposition of world fishery production and direction of trade for selected countries.