August 23, 2010

US beef exports to South Korea surge 130% in H1

Through the first half of this year, the value of US beef exports to South Korea reached US$225 million, up 130% compared with the first six months of 2009, according to the US Meat Export Federation (USMEF).

South Korea imported a total of 110.7 million pounds of US beef through June of this year, nearly double the amount during the same period last year, USMEF added in an August 13 press release. The US now exports beef from cattle 30 months and younger to ease South Korean fears about bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) infection in the US herd.

The booming business in South Korea has made many US beef producers wary of administration efforts to secure additional access for beef from cattle older than 30 months in that market in the context of the pending US-South Korea free trade agreement (FTA).

These producers fear that pushing South Korea on market access could delay or jeopardise passage of the FTA, which would lower tariffs on US beef exports.

At the current pace, US exports to South Korea this year will still fall short of export levels in 2003, when US beef exports to that country were roughly US$815 million. That was immediately prior to the BSE outbreak in the US herd, which led to South Korean import restrictions.

Meanwhile, beef exports to Japan during the first half of this year totalled 113.9 million pounds, valued at US$270 million, which is an increase of 29% in both volume and value over the first half of 2009, according to USMEF. This increase comes despite the fact that Japan continues to prohibit US beef imports from cattle over 20 months of age.

The US is pressing Japan to further open its beef market and Japan has agreed to do so in principle but without agreeing to a timeline or an agenda, according to reports.

Overall, the value of US beef exports during the first half of this year rose to US$1.83 billion, a 22% increase from 2009's midway point.

Mexico was the only major market where US beef exports were behind last year's pace in terms of both volume and value, according to USMEF. Through June, exports totalled 258.4 million pounds for a value of US$380.4 million, a 24% drop-off from January-June 2009.

In addition, the Mexican government announced last week that it would eliminate antidumping duties placed on US beef imports in 2000 after Mexican cattle producers withdrew their support for continuing them, reports said.