Tariff Policy Withdrawn, Tilapia Market Begins to Recover!

As one of China's key export markets for aquatic products, the U.S. accounts for a significant share of China's aquatic exports. However, the recent tariff war has created unprecedented obstacles for tilapia exports: tilapia prices plummeted, with farm-gate procurement prices crashing below 3 yuan per half-kilogram (1 jin), tilapia wholesale prices in core markets dropping to 4 yuan per half-kilogram, and tilapia market transaction volumes shrinking drastically. This led to a massive backlog of tilapia in ponds and storage facilities, causing overstocking and slow sales of tilapia.

The withdrawal of the tariff policy has quickly boosted confidence in key export-oriented aquatic products like tilapia. After news of U.S.-China trade negotiations broke on May 7, procurement prices for tilapia in production areas such as Maoming began to rise. The farm-gate price for tilapia over 500 grams (1 jin) gradually increased from a low of 3.6 yuan per half-kilogram in mid-April to around 4.1 yuan per half-kilogram.

Generally, the breeding cost for tilapia over 500 grams is about 4 yuan per half-kilogram. With prices now at around 4.15 yuan per half-kilogram, tilapia farmers can roughly break even. Farmer Dasen started selling fish from his pond when prices reached around 4 yuan per half-kilogram. In recent days, tilapia processing plants have been stepping up procurement, while many farmers are waiting for prices to rise further. "There is already a shortage in the market, and farm-gate prices are expected to surge soon," said one industry insider.

Domestic aquatic product traders said that even if U.S. trade tensions ease, they will continue to expand into domestic and non-U.S. markets to reduce reliance on the American market. This includes upgrading varieties, innovating production technologies, introducing new breeding models, and even building tilapia brands through marketing.