US and China presidents, Donald Trump y Xi Jiping. (Photo: Stock File)

Alaska seafood industry fears 'devastating' effect of trade war with China

UNITED STATES
Wednesday, August 15, 2018, 00:10 (GMT + 9)

Alaska fishermen have expressed serious concern about the ‘devastating’ consequences that the United States’ trade war with China could have for the this state's seafood industry.

The Asian giant is the main market of Alaska's seafood products, with purchases reaching  USD 1 billion annually.

In response to the Trump administration’s move to implement extra levies on Chinese goods, last month China imposed a 25 per cent tariff on Pacific Northwest seafood, including Alaskan fish, in a tit-for-tat.

For her part, Frances Leach, executive director of United Fishermen of Alaska (UFA) - the largest fishing trade organisation in Alaska -, highlighted that the results could be “devastating” to Alaska’s seafood industry and that this is not an easily replaced market, Reuters reported.

For Alaska’s seafood industry the timing could not be worse. The state has worked for years to attract the Chinese market, and just two months ago, Governor Bill Walker led a week-long trade mission to China in which the seafood industry was heavily represented.

Walker’s trade mission was a follow-up to an Alaska visit a year earlier by Chinese President Xi Jinping and his cabinet.

According to Jeremy Woodrow of the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute (ASMI), higher prices due to tariffs could nudge Chinese consumers to products from competing countries such as Russia and Norway, closing Alaska’s emerging opportunity.

Given these issues, Walker and U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski have argued that Alaska’s seafood industry also deserves aid to compensate for the loss, in a similar way to the agriculture sector.

Trump Administration recently proposed USD 12 billion in aid for farmers who have been negatively affected by the tariffs, and Alaskan lawmakers have stated he should consider the same for Alaska's fishing industry.

Trump has slapped USD 34 billion in tariffs on Chinese goods and plans to implement USD 16 billion more on August 23.

China, the world's second-largest economy, has vowed to respond with retaliatory tariffs of the same amount on U.S. products.

Related articles:

- Alaska complains about Chinese seafood import steep tariffs
- Lobster exports feel the impact of trade war with China

 
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