Fishermen pack squid into boxes at Jumunjin Port on South Korea’s east coast, 04 June 2015, as the busy squid-fishing season gets under way. File. Photo by YONHAP / EPA
Feb. 20 (Asia Today) — The number of fishing vessels over 10 tons in North Gyeongsang Province has fallen nearly 16% over the past five years as squid stocks along South Korea’s East Sea coast continue to decline, government data show.
According to the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries’ fisheries statistics portal, 369 vessels exceeding 10 tons were registered in Gyeongbuk in 2024, down from 438 in 2020, a 15.7% decrease.
Local fishermen have long relied on squid as a primary source of income. In 2020, catches of Pacific flying squid in the region reached 20,653 tons, accounting for more than half of total production. By 2023, that figure had plunged to 2,793 tons, an 86% drop in four years.
Analysts attribute the decline in part to rising sea temperatures that have pushed spawning and feeding grounds northward, causing juvenile squid to remain longer in northern Gangwon Province and waters near North Korea.
Some observers also point to large-scale fishing activity by Chinese vessels in North Korean waters. In 2020, Global Fishing Watch, a nonprofit monitoring group, reported that squid populations in South Korean and Japanese waters had fallen about 80% since 2003, linking the decline to foreign fishing in North Korean waters.
The group said more than 900 large Chinese vessels were found operating in the area in violation of U.N. sanctions and estimated they harvested more than 160,000 tons of Pacific flying squid worth roughly $500 million between 2017 and 2018 – an amount comparable to the combined annual catch of South Korea and Japan.
As nearshore squid stocks dwindle, distant-water fishing has expanded. In Busan, the number of vessels over 200 tons rose 18%, from 273 in 2020 to 321 in 2024, even as mid-sized vessels declined.
Overall registered fishing vessels in Busan remained relatively stable at 3,339 in 2024, compared with 3,333 four years earlier, but the fleet composition shifted toward larger ships.
Government data show distant-water squid production nearly doubled from 31,500 tons in 2023 to 63,200 tons in 2024.
Industry groups said a recently passed amendment to the Coastal and Inshore Fisheries Structural Improvement Act could provide a more stable exit path for fishing households facing financial strain.
— Reported by Asia Today; translated by UPI
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Original Korean report: https://www.asiatoday.co.kr/kn/view.php?key=20260220010006175