India's Seafood Exporters Hail Trade Agreements With US And EU As Game-Changers

Visakhapatnam: The Seafood Exporters Association of India (SEAI) has welcomed two major developments that promise to boost India's seafood export sector, saying the timely interventions would restore competitiveness and market access for Indian exporters.

At a media meet held here on Wednesday, SEAI president G. Pawan Kumar thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for successful conclusion of a Free Trade Agreement with the European Union and a recent trade understanding with the US, both of which have resulted in sharp reductions of import tariffs on Indian seafood.

He said the US, India's largest seafood export market with shipments valued at $2.78 billion in 2024-25, had severely impacted exports by imposing punitive tariffs of 50 per cent in August 2025, which led to a decline of about 6.3 per cent in value terms and nearly 15 per cent in quantity during the April-Nov 2025 period.

He said, however, the recent trade deal has lowered tariffs to 18 per cent, thereby restoring competitiveness and market access for Indian seafood exports.

“SEAI welcomes the conclusion of the trade deal with the USA, which has resulted in the lowering of tariffs to 18 per cent, thereby restoring competitiveness and market access for Indian seafood exports," the association stated.

Simultaneously, the FTA with the European Union has emerged as a major positive development for the sector.

According to available reports, the agreement would reduce import duty on Indian seafood exports to the EU from prevailing levels of 4.2-7.5 per cent to nil, providing Indian exporters a level playing field with global competitors.

The association stated that even before the FTA's full implementation, India had already exported seafood worth approximately `1.1 billion to the European Union in 2024-25.

Following the listing of 102 new Indian fishery units by the EU, exports have surged dramatically. During April-Nov 2025, seafood exports to the EU increased by 28 per cent in quantity terms and by 37.8 per cent in value terms compared to the corresponding period of the previous year.