Trump tariff impact becomes clearer: Andhra pegs shrimp export losses at Rs 25,000 crore, 50% export orders cancelled

US tariffs touched 59.72 percent after Trump announced 25 percent additional tariffs over and above the 25 percent announced earlier, as well as the 5.76 percent countervailing duty and 3.96 percent anti-dumping duty.

In separate letters to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, and Fisheries Minister Rajeev Ranjan Singh, Naidu suggested relief in Goods and Services Tax and extending Centre’s financial packages to Andhra Pradesh’s aqua farmers to indemnify them against the losses and asked them to consider looking for markets beyond the US.

Andhra Pradesh accounts for 80 percent of the country’s shrimp exports and 34 percent of marine exports valued at around Rs 21,246 crore annually. Over 30 lakh people are estimated to be dependent on shrimp exports and allied activities in the state.

Pointing out that aqua farmers and their families were facing hardships due to the tariffs, Naidu said that his government had already announced various relief measures – such as reducing the price of aqua feed by Rs 9 per kg – and are considering other measures, including subsidising the price of transformers.

He asked the Centre to facilitate bank support for exporters and aqua companies — including a 240-day moratorium on loan and interest repayments, interest subsidies, and a temporary waiver of the 5 percent GST on frozen shrimp. In addition, he urged the Centre to focus on diversifying export markets beyond the US by having Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with the European Union, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, and Russia to boost exports.

The chief minister also sought interim financial support for exporters, clarity on tariff/tax relief schemes, and noted that exporters were ready to supply seafood to the EU.