Norway 'already seeing the consequences' of tariffs

Last week’s decision by the United States decided to impose a 12.5% tariff on Norwegian goods is a significant challenge to the Nordic country’s seafood industry, according to Karine Rød Haraldsson, the Norwegian Seafood Council’s seafood envoy to the US.

The US tariffs and exemptions are complex, and it is not yet completely clear what import duties will fall on particular products, but it appears that generally goods from the UK will continue to attract a 10% tariff.  

“Norway has now received a tariff rate of 12.5%, while the EU and the UK receive 10% and important competitors such as Canada, Iceland, the Faroe Islands and Greenland receive practically zero tariffs. This gives our competitors a clear advantage in the American market,” she told Fish Farming Expert’s Norwegian sister site, Kyst.no.

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Haraldsson pointed out that the consequences of US president Donald Trump’s previous 10% tariffs on goods imported from almost the whole world were already being felt, even before the increase to 12.5% for Norway.

Salmon down by £159m

“So far this year, the value of Norwegian seafood exports to the US has been reduced by NOK 2.4 billion (£191.3m), of which over NOK 2 billion (£159m) is salmon. Some of this is due to the increased uncertainty and weakened competitiveness that the customs situation has created.

She also emphasised that the customs burden has still not been finally clarified.

“Norway is still subject to a separate Section 301 investigation related to overcapacity, and the outcome of this is not yet known."

The US has long been a priority market for Norwegian seafood, with extensive marketing efforts from both the industry and the Seafood Council.

“Therefore, it is of course unfortunate that Norwegian products now face worse competitive conditions than several of our most important competitors,” said Haraldsson.

Market won't disappear

At the same time, the Seafood Council’s assessment is that the strong position Norwegian seafood has built up in the US will not disappear overnight.

“American importers, distributors, restaurants, and consumers know Norwegian seafood well. That provides a good starting point, but it will be more important than ever to document the value of Norwegian seafood and work actively to maintain our market position.”

According to Haraldsson, the Norwegian seafood industry has shown great ability to adapt to changing market conditions over many decades. She believes that the most important thing now is to monitor the situation closely while maintaining a long-term perspective in the marketing work.

New opportunities

“The US will continue to be a very important market, and many companies will continue to invest there. At the same time, there may be a need to strengthen work in other established markets and develop new market opportunities to reduce risk when the framework conditions change.”

She said the Seafood Council has close dialogue with Norwegian authorities, who are working to highlight why Norway’s high tariff rate is “unreasonable” compared to several of its competitor countries.

“The outcome of both the further Section 301 process and any negotiations will be important for the competitiveness of Norwegian seafood going forward,” concluded Haraldsson.