Low salmon prices in June caused a “historic” decline in the value of Norwegian seafood exports

A sharp decline in Norway’s seafood exports in June resulted in the country recording a lower seafood export value for the first half of 2023.

Data from the Norwegian Seafood Council (NSC) shows that Norway recorded a “historic” decline in the value of seafood exports in June. Based on export figures, the country’s export value fell to NOK 12.1 billion (USD 1.14 billion, EUR 1.06 billion) in June 2024, a decrease of 18 percent or NOK 2.7 billion (USD 256 million, EUR 237 million) compared to the same month in 2023.

This decline, the NSC said, was the largest single-month decline in the value of seafood exports in history. The loss in value in June was largely responsible for the decline in the value of seafood exports for the entire first half of 2024, with the country exporting NOK 80.6 billion (USD 7.6 billion, EUR 7.1 billion) worth of seafood, a decrease of 2 percent or NOK 1.6 billion (USD 151 million, EUR 140 million) compared to the same period in 2023.

Despite the decline, NSC CEO Christian Chramer said the first half of 2024 was still a solid six months for the country’s seafood exports.

“Although there was no increase in value, the first half of the year was the second best ever in terms of value,” he said. “Only last year was better. A weak Norwegian krone and high prices for cod and salmon boosted value in the first five months of the year.”

The decline in June was almost entirely due to falling salmon prices, said Chramer. Salmon is by far the most important fish species for Norway in terms of value.

“Salmon still accounts for 70 percent of the total value of Norwegian seafood exports. When the price of fresh whole salmon fell by as much as NOK 31 (USD 2.93, EUR 2.72) in June compared to the previous month, this had a significant impact on the total value,” Chramer said.

The export value of salmon fell to NOK 56.3 billion (USD 5.3 billion, EUR 4.9 billion) in the first half of 2024, a decrease of NOK 1.8 billion (USD 170 million, EUR 158 million) or 3 percent compared to the same period in 2023. Exports also declined in volume, falling to 500,660 tonnes (MT), a decrease of 4 percent compared to the previous year.

Salmon’s stock had risen for 36 consecutive months, NSC said, before stagnating and beginning to fall in March.

“The situation was challenging in the first half of the year. Biological challenges led to lower catches and a change in product composition towards more fillets,” says Chramer. “In June, global competition from other producing countries also increased, which had a negative impact on prices. The battle for salmon customers has now really intensified.”

A lack of wage growth coupled with inflation has led to lower purchasing power in the EU market, said Chramer, which is partly responsible for the decline in export value.

In contrast to salmon, trout export volume and value increased. Norway exported 29,839 tonnes of trout worth NOK 2.9 billion (USD 275 million, EUR 254 million) in the first half of 2024, up 44 percent in volume and 27 percent in value compared to the same period in 2023. Much of this was thanks to a massive increase in exports to Ukraine, which grew by NOK 423 million (USD 40 million, EUR 37 million), or 282 percent.

“Ukraine is a market for both salmon and trout. Despite a 30 percent decline in salmon export volume, salmon export volume increased by 11 percent,” NSC Seafood Analyst Paul Aandahl said. “The shift towards trout in Ukraine must be seen against the background of lower prices for trout compared to salmon.”

However, the trout was an exception among most species in Norway.

Exports of …