China jumps into number one slot as Spanish shrimp imports reach record high in 2005

Spain, Europe’s biggest shrimp market, imported a record 145 000 tonnes of shrimp during 2004. Preliminary figures for 2005 point to another record level last year with imports up 7% to almost 156 000 tonnes. Last year’s increase follows a more or less continuous upward trend in Spanish shrimp imports in recent years.

Spanish imports also increased last year in value terms, a reversal of the negative trend of 2004. Total imports were worth €845 million, a 7% increase on the previous year. Falling average import prices over the past four to five years had meant that, at least until 2005, the value of Spanish shrimp imports have not kept pace with volume increases.

Sharp fluctuations in market shares

The moderate increase in overall Spanish shrimp imports last year is in stark contrast to the somewhat dramatic shifts in import shares among the leading suppliers. The most striking change is China’s progression from a 2% import share during 2004 to 17% for last year. This jump, which follows the easing of EU restrictions on Chinese shrimp imports, puts China in the number one position as a shrimp supplier to Spain. The imposition of anti-dumping duties tariffs by the USA on several shrimp producing countries, including China, is no doubt a key factor underlying a switch by Chinese exporters from the US market to the EU. US shrimp imports from China (including shell-on, peeled and processed) fell by over 20 000 tonnes last year while Spanish imports from China (apparently mainly shell-on) increased by almost 24 000 tonnes.

China’s jump into the number one slot contrasts sharply with the situation for Argentina, the leading shrimp supplier to Spain in recent years. Argentina’s landings of the wild Pleoticus muelleri shrimp have been on a downward trend since 2001 when catch levels amounted to almost 79 000 tonnes. Provisional catch figures for 2005 point to volumes of around 7 000 tonnes, the lowest level since 1997. This decline is reflected in a 74% drop in Spanish imports from Argentina, down from almost 21 000 tonnes in 2004 to less than 6 000 tonnes last year, a drop in share terms from 14% to 3%. The value of Spanish imports from Argentina is also down but at a lower rate, 60% from €155 million to €58 million.

Brazil, the number two shrimp supplier to Spain during 2004, remained in second position last year despite a 6% decline to less than 17 000 tonnes. Over the past ten years, Brazil’s fast expanding farmed shrimp industry has boosted exports to several markets, Spanish imports jumping from less than a thousand tonnes in 1999 to almost 18 000 tonnes in 2004. However, after reaching a high of over 90 000 tonnes in 2003, Brazilian farmed shrimp production has fallen to around 76 000 in 2004 and to an estimated 65 000 tonnes last year, a decline which largely accounts for the weaker volume sales to Spain during 2005.

Notwithstanding the mixed results from Argentina and Brazil, Spain’s reliance on Latin America as a key shrimp supplying region was boosted during 2005 by a jump in sales from both Ecuador and Colombia.

In line with the ongoing recovery of its farmed shrimp industry, imports from Ecuador increased by 55%, to 15 600 tonnes, while Spanish import values were up 69% to €61 million. This latter increase meant that Ecuador and Brazil were on a par in value terms last year, both countries accounting for just over 7% of Spanish value imports, behind China (11.4%) and Morocco (7.5%). In volume terms, Ecuador accounted for 10% of Spanish imports last year, up from less than 7% in 2004.

Positive price trend for Latin American suppliers during 2005?

Overall average prices (unit values) for Spanish shrimp imports were unchanged at €5.42/kg over the 2004/05 period. This apparent stability, however, reflects a balancing of changing values among the leading suppliers. China’s volume increase was helped by a 33% drop in unit values from €5.43/kg in 2004 to €3.65/kg last year. On the other hand, unit values for Brazilian shrimp increased 12%, to €3.63/kg, while those for Ecuador were up 9%, to €3.91/kg, compared to 2004. The upward trend in unit values is also evident for Colombia (+14%) and Argentina (+45%). Trade figures do not indicate whether these increases partly reflect a changing product mix. It is possible, particularly for farmed shrimp, that the higher unit values reflect, at least in part, larger average size grades in Spanish imports last year.

With no indication of any weakening in farmed shrimp supplies, European import price trends during the first quarter of 2006 remain uncertain. Industry comments suggest a change in market psychology in the direction of firmer prices. Such a trend would at least be in line with that of a number of other sectors in the seafood industry. However, with first quarter shrimp sales traditionally quiet, it may be some time yet before any significant upward price trend becomes evident in the Spanish market.

Gerry O’Sullivan
© 2006 FAO