Container terminal. (Photo: Stock File)
CHILE
Wednesday, August 20, 2014, 21:50 (GMT + 9)
Fishery and aquaculture product exports from Chile during the first five months of 2014 amounted to USD 2,697.7 million, 24.2 per cent more than in the same period of 2013, when this figure was USD 2,172.1 million.
However, the volume of exports between January and May of 2014 dropped by 6.3 per cent, from 607,270 tonnes – in 2013 -- to 568,820 tonnes this year, the Undersecretariat of Fisheries and Aquaculture (SUBPESCA) reported.
Frozen products were those having higher participation in export volumes, as they constituted 51.3 per cent of the total.
They were followed by the products associated with the production industry, chilled fresh products and dried algae, according to the latest SUBPESCA Fisheries and Aquaculture Report.
According to statistics from SUBPESCA, the main export was Atlantic salmon, which accounted for 47.9 per cent (USD 1,292 million) in revenues from sales abroad.
Further back Pacific salmon (14 per cent of total) and rainbow trout (15.4 per cent) were located.
Chilean products were destined for 92 countries, of which the nine major ones concentrated 78.2 per cent of total exports. Among them those that stood out were United States, Japan, Brazil, China and Russia.
With respect to the capture sector, the accumulated value of fish exports (247,500 tonnes) between January and May 2014 amounted to USD 525.2 million.
In the first five months 107,505 tonnes of fishmeal were sold abroad for USD 159.9 million, while a year earlier 122,710 tonnes worth USD 227.4 million had been exported.
The most important destinations of fishmeal were China, Korea, Spain, Japan and Italy.
Out of the total exported fishmeal, 66.9 per cent had prime quality, 21.7 per cent was super prime and 10.2 per cent was standard.
Sales of frozen seafood products abroad totalled USD 191.6 million, which represented a decrease of 12.3 per cent compared to the same period of 2013. These products went mainly to Nigeria, United States and Korea, which accounted for 18.9 per cent, 15.4 per cent and 9.1 per cent, respectively.
As for canned products, the sales performed in the first five months of 2014 totalled USD 32.8 million, 18.2 per cent higher than a year earlier (USD 27.8 million).
The Aquaculture sector exports accounted for 80.5 per cent of the total value of sales abroad and 56.5 per cent of total exports in the first five months of this year, with USD 2,172 million and about 321,000 tonnes.
The current estimate shows an increase of 35.4 per cent compared to what was recorded last year.