Malaysia suspended imports of five Thai shrimp species effective 1 June 2026, stating the move was a reciprocal response to Thai restrictions on Malaysian seabass. Thailand had stepped up testing of Malaysian seabass shipments at a major border crossing in May 2026 after detecting chemical and antibiotic residues in the shipments. The increased testing slowed customs clearance and caused spoilage of fresh fish. Thailand justified its restrictions on Malaysian seabass on food safety grounds. Malaysia’s suspension cut off a market worth more than US$10 million a year for Thai exporters. Thailand shipped more than US$5 million of shrimp to Malaysia in the first four months of 2026. According to therakyatpost.com, the dispute began quietly at border checkpoints months before June 2026, and domestic farm lobbying in Thailand had quietly pushed the seafood restrictions. Thailand’s Prime Minister ordered urgent talks with Malaysia, according to therakyatpost.com. Businesstimes.com.sg reported that Thailand may raise the seafood dispute at the World Trade Organization. According to scmp, Malaysia and Thailand are edging closer to resolving the seafood safety dispute, and Malaysian officials confirmed that Thai counterparts had returned a completed food safety standards questionnaire for formal assessment.