Socio-economic impact of Covid-19 on the fishing sector: A case study of a region highly dependent on fishing in Spain

Galicia is the most important fishing region in Spain. Nearly 50% of the volume of catches and of the national fishing fleet are concentrated in this region. During the Covid-19 pandemic, the fishing sector had the status of an essential sector and was not forced to stop its activity by the national Government. However, its economic performance has deteriorated in 2020. This article aims to analyze the impact of the pandemic on the extractive fishing sector in Galicia. For this purpose, the performance of the main economic and financial variables of the 246 companies that constitute this industry has been studied. The companies pertain to different extractive sectors (the national, offshore and large-scale fleets) and are in 9 different areas (Vigo, Pontevedra, Arousa, Muros, Fisterra, Costa da Morte, A Corun & SIM;a-Ferrol, Cedeira and A Marin & SIM;a). The results of the analysis show that the 9 fishing zones share a generalized negative trend but that there is heterogeneity in the results. Among the most determining factors are the predominant fleet extract, the target species caught, or the perception of public subsidies.

Automated summary

Galicia is the most important fishing region in Spain, but the Covid-19 pandemic has had a negative impact on its fishing sector in 2020. By studying the economic and financial variables of the main companies in the industry, it was found that all nine fishing zones showed a general negative trend, but with heterogeneity in the results. The main factors influencing the impact include the type of fishing fleet, target species caught, and perception of public subsidies.