© Norwegian Seafood Council
Norway exported seafood worth NOK 13.9 billion in April 2024 - a 7 percent increase compared with the same month in the previous year.
“The value of exports has never been higher in April than this year. The growth is largely due to the Norwegian krone, which has weakened slightly against the euro and the US dollar compared with April last year. In addition, last month saw increased export volumes for several species, such as trout, saithe, haddock, snow crab and mackerel," said Christian Chramer, chief executive of the Norwegian Seafood Council, in a press release from the organisation.
Chramer also suggests that the variable timing of the Easter holidays can affect the volume of international seafood exports.
“Since we always compare the development of seafood exports with the same month in the previous year, it can have a major impact when Easter falls in different months, such as this year and last year. In that case, it is more correct to look at seafood exports in March and April together," he explained.
Looking at March and April combined, Norway exported seafood worth a total of NOK 27.6 billion - a decrease of NOK 1.1 billion compared with the same period for the previous year. This decrease results partly from a quota reduction for wild-caught fish species, and a decrease in the volume of salmon exports.
Norwegian salmon exports have increased in value by NOK 222 million compared with the same time last year, despite the volume of exports falling by 1 percent.
"The price of fresh whole salmon is at a record high of NOK 121 per kg. This is NOK 3 per kg higher than the previous record month, which was March 2023,” said Norwegian Seafood Council seafood analyst Paul T. Aandahl.
