Crustaceans (shrimp, crab, lobster): South Korea exports and imports
HS 0306 · 갑각류(껍데기가 붙어 있는 것인지에 상관없으며 살아 있는 것과 신선한 것·냉장한 것·냉동한 것·건조한 것·염장이나 염수장한 것), 훈제한 갑각류(껍데기가 붙어 있는 것인지 또는 훈제 전이나 훈제과정 중에 조리한 것인지에 상관없다), 껍데기가 붙어 있는 상태로 물에 찌거나 삶은 갑각류(냉장한 것·냉동한 것·건조한 것·염장이나 염수장한 것인지에 상관없다) · latest month: October 2026
In October 2026, South Korea exported $23.9 million of crustaceans (shrimp, crab, lobster) (HS 0306), up 31.5% from September 2026 and up 13.1% from October 2025.
Over the 12 months to October 2026, exports of crustaceans (shrimp, crab, lobster) (HS 0306) totalled $239.7 million, up 24.5% from the 12 months before ($192.5 million).
The largest destination over the 12 months to October 2026 was China ($97.1 million, 40.5% of the total), followed by Vietnam and Hong Kong.
That was 11.6% of South Korea's exports under HS chapter 03 (fish, crustaceans and other seafood) over the same 12 months.
Imports in October 2026 were $101.2 million (down 6.0% from October 2025), leaving a deficit of $77.3 million for the month.
Official description of HS 0306: Crustaceans, whether in shell or not, live, fresh, chilled, frozen, dried, salted or in brine; smoked crustaceans, whether in shell or not, whether or not cooked before or during the smoking process; crustaceans, in shell, cooked by steaming or by boiling in water, whether or not chilled, frozen, dried, salted or in brine.
Last 24 months
Subheadings under HS 0306
| Code | Product | Exports, 12 months | Share | vs 12 months before | October 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0306.11 | Rock lobster and other sea crawfish (Palinurus spp., Panulirus spp., Jasus spp.) | $1.0M | 0.4% | – | $0 |
| 0306.11.1000 | Smoked | $0 | 0.0% | – | $0 |
| 0306.11.9000 | Other | $1.0M | 100.0% | – | $0 |
| 0306.12 | Lobsters (Homarus spp.) | $33K | 0.0% | -57.3% | $2,000 |
| 0306.12.1000 | Smoked | $0 | 0.0% | – | $0 |
| 0306.12.9000 | Other | $33K | 100.0% | -57.3% | $2,000 |
| 0306.14 | Crabs | $136.0M | 56.7% | +36.2% | $15.4M |
| 0306.14.1010 | Smoked | $745 | 0.0% | – | $0 |
| 0306.14.1090 | Other | $663K | 0.5% | +85.2% | $176K |
| 0306.14.2000 | King crabs | $45.1M | 33.2% | +153.8% | $5.1M |
| 0306.14.3010 | Smoked | $33K | 0.0% | – | $843 |
| 0306.14.3090 | Other | $11.6M | 8.5% | +59.8% | $925K |
| 0306.14.9090 | Other | $78.6M | 57.8% | +5.5% | $9.3M |
| 0306.15 | Norway lobsters (Nephrops norvegicus) | $0 | 0.0% | – | $0 |
| 0306.16 | Cold-water shrimps and prawns (Pandalus spp., Crangon crangon) | $712K | 0.3% | +10.5% | $114K |
| 0306.16.1010 | Smoked | $0 | 0.0% | – | $0 |
| 0306.16.1090 | Other | $24K | 3.3% | – | $0 |
| 0306.16.9090 | Other | $688K | 96.7% | +7.4% | $114K |
| 0306.17 | Other shrimps and prawns | $1.6M | 0.7% | +139.4% | $37K |
| 0306.17.1010 | Smoked | $0 | 0.0% | – | $0 |
| 0306.17.1090 | Other | $969K | 61.6% | +531.1% | $34K |
| 0306.17.9010 | Smoked | $0 | 0.0% | – | $0 |
| 0306.17.9091 | White leg shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) | $8,123 | 0.5% | – | $0 |
| 0306.17.9099 | Other | $597K | 37.9% | +18.8% | $3,190 |
| 0306.19 | Other | $176K | 0.1% | -31.5% | $1,584 |
| 0306.19.1000 | Smoked | $0 | 0.0% | – | $0 |
| 0306.19.9000 | Other | $176K | 100.0% | -31.5% | $1,584 |
| 0306.31 | Rock lobster and other sea crawfish (Palinurus spp., Panulirus spp., Jasus spp.) | $0 | 0.0% | – | $0 |
| 0306.32 | Lobsters (Homarus spp.) | $38K | 0.0% | +171.4% | $3,193 |
| 0306.33 | Crabs | $96.2M | 40.1% | +8.7% | $8.0M |
| 0306.33.1000 | Swimming crab(Portunus trituberculatus) | $5.2M | 5.4% | +47.0% | $45K |
| 0306.33.2000 | Snow crabs | $6.7M | 7.0% | +0.3% | $696K |
| 0306.33.9000 | Other | $84.4M | 87.7% | +7.7% | $7.2M |
| 0306.34 | Norway lobsters (Nephrops norvegicus) | $0 | 0.0% | – | $0 |
| 0306.35 | Cold-water shrimps and prawns (Pandalus spp., Crangon crangon) | $0 | 0.0% | – | $0 |
| 0306.36 | Other shrimps and prawns | $498K | 0.2% | +191.9% | $22K |
| 0306.39 | Other | $1.8M | 0.7% | +2,920% | $97K |
| 0306.91 | Rock lobster and other sea crawfish (Palinurus spp., Panulirus spp., Jasus spp.) | $73K | 0.0% | +429.3% | $0 |
| 0306.92 | Lobsters (Homarus spp.) | $0 | 0.0% | – | $0 |
| 0306.93 | Crabs | $1,883 | 0.0% | -94.8% | $0 |
| 0306.94 | Norway lobsters (Nephrops norvegicus) | $0 | 0.0% | – | $0 |
| 0306.95 | Shrimps and prawns | $1.6M | 0.7% | -28.1% | $151K |
| 0306.95.1020 | Dried | $16K | 1.0% | +46.1% | $0 |
| 0306.95.1030 | Salted or in brine | $13K | 0.8% | – | $2,457 |
| 0306.95.1040 | Smoked | $0 | 0.0% | – | $0 |
| 0306.95.9020 | Dried | $116K | 7.4% | -67.2% | $2,503 |
| 0306.95.9030 | Salted or in brine | $1.4M | 90.8% | -21.4% | $146K |
| 0306.95.9040 | Smoked | $0 | 0.0% | – | $0 |
| 0306.99 | Other | $58K | 0.0% | +262.9% | $0 |
| 0306.99.2000 | Dried | $33K | 56.6% | – | $0 |
| 0306.99.3000 | Salted or in brine | $25K | 43.4% | +57.6% | $0 |
| 0306.99.4000 | Smoked | $0 | 0.0% | – | $0 |
Six-digit codes are international; the indented ten-digit codes are South Korea's own subdivision. These rows are world totals; "Share" is the share of the row above.
Top destinations
Export value over the 12 months to October 2026. 48 countries received this product from South Korea in the last 24 months; the table shows the largest 20.
| Rank | Country | Exports, 12 months | Share | vs 12 months before | Rank before | October 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | China | $97.1M | 40.5% | +69.0% | 1 | $12.0M |
| 2 | Vietnam | $45.2M | 18.9% | -4.4% | 2 | $2.8M |
| 3 | Hong Kong | $28.8M | 12.0% | -14.0% | 3 | $2.8M |
| 4 | United States | $14.5M | 6.0% | +70.0% | 6 | $1.6M |
| 5 | Taiwan | $14.5M | 6.0% | +8.1% | 4 | $1.0M |
| 6 | Canada | $10.4M | 4.4% | +18.4% | 5 | $1.1M |
| 7 | Singapore | $8.4M | 3.5% | +22.0% | 7 | $717K |
| 8 | Japan | $6.1M | 2.6% | +39.6% | 9 | $683K |
| 9 | Indonesia | $4.1M | 1.7% | -18.8% | 8 | $193K |
| 10 | Malaysia | $3.2M | 1.3% | +48.5% | 11 | $361K |
| 11 | Thailand | $2.3M | 1.0% | +4.9% | 10 | $93K |
| 12 | United Arab Emirates | $2.3M | 1.0% | +45.0% | 12 | $379K |
| 13 | Philippines | $977K | 0.4% | +28.1% | 13 | $80K |
| 14 | Egypt | $579K | 0.2% | – | – | $0 |
| 15 | Tunisia | $575K | 0.2% | – | – | $0 |
| 16 | Lithuania | $160K | 0.1% | – | – | $0 |
| 17 | Australia | $134K | 0.1% | -25.8% | 14 | $12K |
| 18 | Mongolia | $104K | 0.0% | +52.9% | 16 | $5,153 |
| 19 | Guam | $78K | 0.0% | -36.3% | 15 | $8,760 |
| 20 | Mexico | $38K | 0.0% | +191.6% | 19 | $0 |
Countries are linked when exports of this product to them reached $5,000,000 over 24 months.
Monthly figures
| Month | Exports | vs year earlier | Export weight | Export $/kg | Imports | Import weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| October 2026 | $23.9M | +13.1% | 1,640 t | $14.54 | $101.2M | 10,903 t |
| September 2026 | $18.1M | +12.8% | 1,072 t | $16.92 | $135.5M | 13,064 t |
| August 2026 | $15.3M | +106.3% | 1,105 t | $13.82 | $100.0M | 11,369 t |
| July 2026 | $15.1M | +21.0% | 1,116 t | $13.49 | $83.0M | 10,264 t |
| June 2026 | $20.1M | +24.9% | 1,837 t | $10.94 | $91.1M | 11,048 t |
| May 2026 | $32.7M | +34.6% | 2,880 t | $11.37 | $85.1M | 9,669 t |
| April 2026 | $21.8M | +13.1% | 1,867 t | $11.67 | $103.3M | 10,678 t |
| March 2026 | $18.0M | +27.2% | 1,244 t | $14.43 | $92.3M | 10,463 t |
| February 2026 | $21.3M | +57.5% | 1,039 t | $20.54 | $90.5M | 10,517 t |
| January 2026 | $15.5M | +9.9% | 807 t | $19.25 | $118.5M | 12,910 t |
| December 2025 | $23.7M | +35.3% | 1,733 t | $13.68 | $117.3M | 12,291 t |
| November 2025 | $14.2M | -13.4% | 1,267 t | $11.24 | $95.2M | 11,059 t |
| October 2025 | $21.1M | +11.9% | 991 t | $21.28 | $107.6M | 10,655 t |
| September 2025 | $16.1M | +26.4% | 913 t | $17.62 | $117.4M | 12,603 t |
| August 2025 | $7.4M | -21.7% | 506 t | $14.61 | $89.1M | 10,275 t |
| July 2025 | $12.4M | +18.8% | 919 t | $13.54 | $94.8M | 12,222 t |
| June 2025 | $16.1M | +35.1% | 1,223 t | $13.16 | $98.1M | 11,528 t |
| May 2025 | $24.3M | +79.0% | 1,977 t | $12.30 | $91.7M | 11,796 t |
| April 2025 | $19.3M | +21.8% | 1,354 t | $14.24 | $98.0M | 10,950 t |
| March 2025 | $14.1M | +23.1% | 960 t | $14.71 | $88.0M | 10,513 t |
| February 2025 | $13.5M | +18.1% | 914 t | $14.83 | $89.0M | 9,966 t |
| January 2025 | $14.1M | -13.3% | 563 t | $25.11 | $85.2M | 8,668 t |
| December 2024 | $17.5M | +0.8% | 876 t | $20.01 | $119.2M | 11,108 t |
| November 2024 | $16.4M | -32.8% | 1,367 t | $12.04 | $98.1M | 12,365 t |
Exports FOB, imports CIF, US dollars. Weight is net weight. "vs year earlier" compares export value with the same month one year before and is left blank when that month was under $10,000. Source: Korea Customs Service, via data.go.kr.