February 15, 2008

Norway's January salmon exports hit record high at US$259 million

Norway's salmon and trout exports hit to a record high at US$259 million in January 2008, up by US$3.3 million on-year despite lower prices, according to the Norwegian Seafood Export Council (NSEC) and Statistics Norway.

A total of 50,000 tonnes of salmon and trout were exported, up by 7,000 tonnes.

Average export price for trout dropped by US$1.57 to US$4.15 per kilogram, while export price for salmon suffered only a slight drop of US$0.44 per kilogram.

NSEC analyst Paul Aandahl said the dip in trout price is mainly due to competition from Chilean suppliers in Russia and Japan.

Salmon exports to Hong Kong and China rose by 585 tonnes to 1,649 tonnes, while exports to Japan fell by 140 tonnes to 1,815 tonnes.

Exports to the EU rose by 4,000 tonnes to 33,000 tonnes. Norway enjoyed the biggest market growth in Poland, with exports soaring by 2,836 tonnes to 5,115 tonnes.

Exports to Russia fell by 281 tonnes to 3,565 tonnes, while exports to Ukraine went up by 452 tonnes to 1,115 tonnes.

Trout exports grew by US$3.9 million to US$19.9 million. A total of 4,946 tonnes were exported, up by 2,237 tonnes.

Russia imported the most trout with 2,398 tonnes, followed by Ukraine with 791 tonnes.