Amaravati, Feb 3 (IANS) Andhra Pradesh’s Agriculture Minister Kinjarapu Atchannaidu on Tuesday welcomed the decision of the US government to reduce tariffs on Indian products, saying that this will provide significant relief to seafood exporters in the state, especially the aquaculture sector.

He said that the tariff reduction from 25 per cent to 18 per cent under the India-US trade agreement will be a boon for Andhra Pradesh, which is a leader in the aquaculture sector, and will lead to increased income stability and employment opportunities for farmers and fishermen.

Atchannaidu hoped that exports, which had declined in recent months due to high tariffs, would rebound while the competitiveness of Indian products in the US market would increase.

Seafood exports, including frozen shrimp, are expected to increase by 10 to 15 per cent, and profit margins in the processing sector will improve, he said.

The imposition of punitive tariffs, in addition to the existing 25 per cent tariff, resulted in a total tariff burden of 50-58 per cent. As a result, India’s seafood exports to the US during the April-November 2025 period decreased by approximately 15 per cent in volume to 2.01 lakh tonnes and by 6.3 per cent in value to $1.72 billion.

Frozen shrimp, which is the primary seafood export to the US, was particularly severely affected by this situation.

With the reduction of the tariff to 18 per cent, the competitiveness of Indian seafood products in the US market is expected to significantly improve, leading to the resumption of stalled export orders and creating favourable conditions for the release of goods stored in warehouses.

It is projected that seafood exports to the US could increase by 10 to 15 per cent in the coming months, and that exports could reach pre-tariff levels in the second half of 2025-26.

This development is also expected to improve profit margins in the seafood processing sector, with processor margins, which had fallen to 5-5.5 per cent during the high tariff period, likely to return to the 7-8 per cent level after the tariff reduction.

Atchannaidu stated that the duty concessions provided on inputs required for seafood processing in the Union Budget 2026 will provide additional support to this sector.

He pointed along with the recovery of the US market, Indian seafood exports to non-US markets such as the European Union, China, Vietnam, Russia, and the United Kingdom are also continuing steadily.

He said the fact that the share of non-US markets in shrimp exports is expected to reach approximately 57 per cent by the beginning of 2025–26 is evidence of market diversification. He believes that this tariff reduction will be a boon for Andhra Pradesh, which is at the forefront of seafood production in the country.

With the revival of exports, income stability for farmers and fishermen in the state’s fisheries and aquaculture sectors will increase, along with improved employment opportunities and Gross Value Added (GVA).

He mentioned that according to MPEDA estimates, total seafood exports across the country are likely to reach 14–15 lakh tonnes in 2025–26.

–IANS

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