SEOUL, Feb. 21 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's fisheries output fell in single digit last year due to high water temperature, statistical office data showed Friday.
Total fisheries output shrank 2.2 percent from a year earlier to 3.61 million tons in 2024 after growing in the previous year, according to Statistics Korea.
The downturn was attributable to the warming of the ocean, caused by climate change.
Output in deep-sea fishing jumped 16.7 percent on the higher catch of bonito, squid and cuttlefish, but offshore fishing output retreated 11.6 percent on the lower catch of mackerel, anchovy and hairtail.
Aquacultural production declined 1.6 percent to 2.25 million tons on the back of lower output in short-necked clam, sea squirt and kelp, while the output of aquatic products from inland fishing declined 5.4 percent on lower output in trout, freshwater snail and marsh clam.
In terms of value, the total fisheries output grew 6.9 percent over the year to 10.09 trillion won (7 billion U.S. dollars) in 2024, affected by higher product prices in the aquaculture sector. ■
