India's marine products' export falls 10 percent

Wednesday, 21 January 2009, 16:04 IST
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Bhubaneswar: India's marine product export earnings declined at least 10 percent last year following a slump in demand triggered by the global financial meltdown, a senior industry official here said. "The export scenario does not appear encouraging. Prices of marine products have come down due to a fall in demand in the international markets," Marine Product Export Development Authority (MPEDA) chairman G. Mohan Kumar told reporters here. With earnings falling 10 percent to $1.9 billion, Kumar feared the worst was still to come. He, however, added that in rupee terms, revenue has risen three percent due to the depreciation of the Indian currency against the dollar. MPEDA is India's nodal agency for the regulation, development and promotion of marine products export. Of the total exports, European Union countries accounted for 35 percent, Japan 16 percent and the US 13 percent. India's share in global marine product market is about two percent, Kumar said. In 2008, about 540,000 tonnes of marine products were exported, reflecting a 10 percent decline, with shrimp contributing more than 52 percent in terms of value, he added.
Source: IANS
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