New developments in Russia's surimi import in 2006
According to provisional figures of Russia's Federal Customs Service, in 2006 Russian importers purchased nearly 18,000 tonnes of surimi (HSC 0304900500 - fresh, chilled or frozen surimi), 22.17% down on 23,000 tonnes in 2005. At the same time, due to a 31%-increase of average prices per kilo of surimi (largest price increases were observed for surimi from Vietnam and Chile) the overall expenses of Russian importers for surimi purchases rose by 1.63% on 2005 and amounted to more than 34 million USD.
The share of Vietnam, Russia's leading supplier of surimi, amounted to 40.7% in volume and 37.5% in value. Thanks to a rise of surimi prices nearly by 57% and growth of supplies by approximately 18%, the total proceeds of Vietnamese exporters increased by 84.62%. Actually, the average statistic price per kilo of Vietnamese surimi purchased by Russian importers appeared to be the lowest both in 2006 and 2005 as compared to other leading suppliers of surimi to Russia.
Even larger growth of surimi import by 94.9% in value and 99.6% in volume as compared to 2005 was recorded for Lithuania, although its share in Russia's overall import of surimi did not let it climb higher than the fourth place: 6.7% in value and 6.5% in volume.
In the year 2006 the second place in value terms (22.1%) and volume (23.2%) was taken by Chile, while in the previous year the South American country was Russia's leading supplier of surimi. The growth of average prices per kilo of Chilean surimi by ca.36% could not compensate a 47%-decrease of supplies, as a result the total value of Russia's surimi imports from Chile dropped by 28.4%.
Apart from taking the third place in the list of Russia's top suppliers of surimi in 2006 (in the year 2005 the country took the second place in value terms), the USA kept on charging the highest prices per kilo of surimi both in 2005 and in 2006 and in the year 2006 the charges grew by another 14.1%. The share of the USA in Russia's overall import of surimi in 2006 amounted to 17.1% in volume and 20.7% in value. The dynamics of the US surimi import by volume and value resembled that of Chilean surimi import: with the growth of average prices per kilo by 14% the volumes of supplies dropped by 30.5% causing a decrease of the country's earnings from sales of its surimi to Russia by 20.1%.
0304 90 050 0 - surimi
| Vietnam | Chile | USA | Lithuania | Peru | TOTAL, including other countries-suppliers | ||
| VALUE | 2006, USD | 12801902 | 7538669 | 7071842 | 2283670 | 1352473 | 34150017 |
| 2005, USD | 6934318 | 10529994 | 8921520 | 1171814 | 1277721 | 33603872 | |
| 2006 versus 2005, +/- %% | +84.62% | -28.41% | -20.73% | +94.88% | +5.85% | +1.63% | |
| VOLUME | 2006, kg | 7242560 | 4117380 | 3037604 | 1158172 | 680380 | 17759896 |
| 2005, kg | 6155840 | 7817690 | 4370800 | 580236 | 594000 | 22819586 | |
| 2006 versus 2005, +/- %% | +17.65% | -47.33% | -30.50% | +99.60% | +14.54% | -22.17% | |
| PRICE | 2006, USD per kg | 1.77 | 1.83 | 2.33 | 1.97 | 1.99 | 1.92 |
| 2005, USD per kg | 1.13 | 1.35 | 2.04 | 2.02 | 2.15 | 1.47 | |
| 2006 versus 2005, +/- %% | +56.92% | +35.93% | +14.06% | -2.36% | -7.59% | +30.58% |
Surimi-based products ready-to-eat
The above analysis coverers fresh, chilled or frozen surimi mince, while the situation on the Russian market of imported surimi-based products ready to eat, with China stepping up as one of the most important suppliers in 2006, will be described in another article of the Russian Fish Report PROFI Pack.