Commercial fish resource valued at $3.8 billion

28 February 2008

Commercial fish resource valued at $3.8 billion

The asset value of New Zealand’s commercial fish resource in 2007 was estimated at $3.8 billion, Statistics New Zealand said today. From 1996 to 2007, New Zealand’s commercial fish resource, as managed under the quota management system (QMS), increased in value by 39 percent, from $2.7 billion in 1996. This information comes from the Fish Monetary Stock Account 1996–2007, an update of the Fish Monetary Stock Account 1996–2006, released today.

In 2007, 20 species contributed 90 percent of the total value, 18 of which have been managed under the QMS over the entire 1996–2007 period. The total number of species managed under the QMS increased from 32, in 1996, to 96, in 2007.

The total asset value recorded in 2007 declined by 1 percent since a high of $3.9 billion in 2004. Economic conditions, including the high value of the New Zealand dollar and increasing fuel prices, are likely to have had an impact on the asset value of the commercial fish stock.

Due to data limitations, this valuation currently excludes recreational or customary catch, species reared under aquaculture conditions, and commercial species not currently managed under the QMS. These are areas for future development within the report. The Fish Monetary Stock Account 1996–2007 and associated tables are available on the Statistics NZ website (http://www.stats.govt.nz/).

This report is part of a series of statistics that can be used to monitor the interaction between the economy and the environment. Dallas Welch (Mrs) Acting Government Statistician 28 February 2008

ENDS

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