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A big change has been seen in India’s seafood sector this year. Amid rising US tariffs, Indian exporters found new global markets, leading to a sharp rise in shrimp exports. The increasing demand from non-US countries not only reduced the downward pressure but also led to a strong growth of exports by 18 percent.
New Delhi. India’s seafood sector no longer wants to depend on America. Amidst the increasing tariff policies of the Trump administration, India has strategically turned towards new markets. As a result, a sharp increase of 18 percent was recorded in shrimp exports in the first five months of the financial year 2026. During this period, India’s export value reached 2.43 billion dollars.
Non-US markets took over India’s momentum
The tremendous increase in demand in non-US countries gave strong support to Indian exporters. According to the report, 86 percent of the total added export value came from these new markets. Non-US exports grew 30 percent to $1.38 billion in 5MFY26, significantly higher than $1.06 billion in the same period last year. The share of these markets has increased from 51 percent to 57 percent. Countries like Vietnam, Belgium, Russia and China have emerged as major buyers of new destinations.
US tariffs increased, India changed course
Tariffs on Indian shrimp are continuously increasing in America, due to which Indian exporters are lagging behind in competition. The average duty from April to August 2025 reached 18 percent, while competitors like Ecuador and Indonesia were taxed only 13-14 percent. The situation became more difficult after August when the effective duty on Indian exports reached almost 58 percent. In such a situation, many states and exporters turned their attention towards non-US markets, where the tax burden was low and demand remained stable.
China, Vietnam and Belgium became big buyers
China remained the biggest buyer in new markets, where India’s exports increased by 16 percent. Vietnam further strengthened its ‘re-export’ role by doubling shrimp imports to $0.18 billion. Due to improvement in demand from the European Union, exports to Belgium also doubled. Japan maintained stable import levels, especially in categories where it previously served as reprocessing centers.
The way forward: hope in new markets
It is estimated that the pace may slow down slightly in the second half of FY26, especially due to weak demand in the US market and rising tariffs. However, it is a matter of relief for the Indian industry that many new units are getting approval for the European Union and Russia. Expansion into new destinations and diversity of demand will play an important role in providing stability to Indian marine exports.
