Strong Philippine Peso Bad For Tuna Exportersff

The recent strong showing of the peso against the US dollar should be a welcome development.

Instead, tuna exporters here are urging the government to intervene to prevent further losses in their export operations.

John Heitz, export manager of Aqua Traders, said their profitability in exporting large yellowfin tuna has been reduced by at least 10 per cent with the strong performance of the peso to the dollar. “The gradual appreciation of the peso for the past several months has not been good to our business,” he lamented.

The kilo for a premium quality tuna is at P250, which is equivalent to $4.46 when the ratio was $1 to P56, Heitz said. At P50 to a dollar, that is now $5 for a kilo of premium quality tuna, which means lesser profit to us, he said.

Fresh and frozen tuna exports are a vital component of the tuna industry, which last year was valued at $27 million.

The country’s principal export markets are Japan, United States and Europe.

Roger Lim, chief executive officer of Aqua Traders, likewise urged the government to intervene by clamping on producers or distributors of products used in the fishing operation such as construction materials like plywood and paints, machine spare parts, and food products. “The prices of these products have not gone down despite the strong performance of the peso to the dollar. These should be closely looked into by the government because their prices should have declined with the weakening of the dollar,” Lim claimed.

But Lim also acknowledged the effect of a strong peso to the fishing operators with the resulting lowering of oil prices. “The lowering of oil prices gives relief to fishing operators. Normally, fuel costs eat up 60 to 70% of a fishing expedition,” he noted. “I’m involved in tuna catching and exporting, the effect of a stronger peso has balanced things,” Lim said.

Those purely involved in the export of fresh tuna has been feeling the crunch of the appreciation of the peso to the dollar, Mr. Lim indicated.

Heitz noted that a stronger peso is unfavorable to fresh tuna exporters.