The Thai Tuna Industry Association (TTIA) expects tuna export value to rise by 15% to 85-90 billion baht this year, thanks to growing demand in the Middle East, South Africa and Latin America, says president Chanintr Chalisarapong.
It also expects the volume of tuna shipments to increase this year after five consecutive years of decline.
"We expect to see growth of about 2% from 650,000 tonnes last year. We bottomed out last year and it will only improve," said Mr Chanintr.
Over the past five years, the value of Thailand's tuna shipments has declined because of the lower cost of raw tuna, but this year the price is expected to be stable.
"The production cost of tuna is also stable in line with the price of fuel," said Mr Chanintr.
Thailand is the world's leading exporter of canned tuna, even though almost all raw tuna is imported and processed here for re-export. Major export markets in the Middle East, South Africa and Latin America continue to grow, accounting for 50% of tuna shipments, followed by the US and Europe (25%) and Canada, Japan and Australia (25%).
"Fortunately, emerging markets such as the Middle East, South Africa and Latin America are still having positive growth that could offset the deep plunge of demand in the US and EU in line with their poor economies," said Mr Chanintr.
The Thai industry has sought ways to avoid being affected by global raw tuna prices by focusing on innovation to increase the value of products.
"We also have to manage to stay in markets where the impact from the global economy and currency exchange volatility are severe. We are selling tuna as commodity products, making us compete for small margins," said Mr Chanintr. "Tuna byproducts can be used as materials in many industries, including cosmetics and nutrients.
The TTIA is closely monitoring the movement of the baht while hoping the Bank of Thailand will intervene to make it more stable when needed.
Exporters are hoping to see the baht remain at 35-36 to the US dollar.