Editor-in-chief Tom Seaman brings you a roundup of the main stories from the previous week.

The intensification of the trade war between the US and China dominated the headlines last week, which Undercurrent News covered extensively on the site and in the Catch the Current podcast. 

Even as Trump rolled back on the over 10% tariffs on most countries, amid flip-flops on whether Canada or Mexico would be included, he doubled down on China -- a key seafood supplier to the US. 

At the end of last week, the US had taken the tariffs on some Chinese seafood imports, such as tilapia, to 170%, as they had 25% even before Donald Trump won a second term as president. The standard level for Chinese imports is 145%, which includes an initial 20% and then 125% "reciprocal" tariffs. 

China has matched the US tariff-for-tariff, with its additional taxes on US seafood now at 135%, with the new 125% coming on top of the 10% added earlier in the year. 

The end result is a rupture in trade between the two, as the tariffs are biting too sharply, sources told Undercurrent. 

US orders of Chinese seafood have ground to a halt, and there are big questions about whether US-origin fish processed in China and imported might be the next victim of the trade war.

Chinese imports of US fish for processing and re-export are officially still excluded the former's tariff. However, although the Trump administration has said only the non-US part of any finished product would be tariffed, this could still lead to significant additional costs.

"For now, it's safe to say that this level of duty has effectively halted much of the processing activity involving US raw materials for reimport into the US market," one Chinese processing executive told Undercurrent. 

Tariff-related discussions dominated the agenda at the Blue Food Innovation Summit, which two members of Undercurrent's team covered live in London. 

Trump's trade war is making investors much more cautious, but opportunities still exist for aquaculture investments, panelists in one session concluded. 

"Aquaculture and aquatech are nascent industries, really, and the huge uncertainty is only going to make people more risk-averse," said Maria Velkova, chief portfolio officer at Aqua-Spark. While it's a more difficult environment, it's the role of investors like Aqua-Spark to push for the continued development of the aquaculture sector, she said.

The global salmon aquaculture sector can adapt to the new trade picture the US has created with new tariffs on essentially all major trading partners, said Cermaq Group CEO Steven Rafferty.

But in response to a question from Undercurrent, he said he couldn't yet determine how the tariff landscape might impact the salmon sector's investment in growth and innovation. 

Besides tariff talk, a US welding company is asking a federal judge to foreclose on Northline Seafoods' freezer barge before the 2025 salmon season in Bristol Bay, Alaska. The 400-foot Hannah has more than $2.8 million in liens filed by multiple vendors claiming nonpayment since July 2024, as Undercurrent previously reported.

Separately, Cooke Aquaculture is considering pulling out of the Chile salmon farming business following a decision by a federal agency to suspend its Huillines 3 operation in the Aysen region.

Click below for links to all the most-read stories from last week.

• Trump tariffs fallout: Vietnam gains advantage over China, as latter plays it cool
• Lienholder asks US authorities to seize freezer barge ahead of Alaska salmon season
• Cooke mulls exit from Chile over disputed suspension of salmon farm operations
• Blue Food Summit: 'A lot of retailers don't know where their seafood comes from'
• Trump tariffs put China processing orders to US on hold; even Alaska-origin trade uncertain
• Crab harvesters applaud Newfoundland fishery minister ahead of price ruling
• Trump lowers most global tariffs to 10%, but raises China's rate to 125%
• Tariffs deal big disadvantage to seafood in proteins' battle for US consumer dollars
• China 84% tariffs on US won't hit Alaskan salmon, whitefish raw material for re-export
• Confusion reigns over tariffs on Asia-processed fillets using US raw material