Lower catches of swordfish, blue fin tuna last year

Total fish landings last year dropped by three per cent - from 1,336,881 kilogrammes to 1,296,387 kilogrammes - when compared to 2005.

The National Statistics Office said the decline was mainly the result of lower catches of swordfish (-26.0 per cent) and blue fin tuna (-24.7 per cent).

Dorado landings increased by 25.1 per cent. The wholesale value of fish landings fell by 2.8 per cent down from Lm2,477,854 to Lm2,409,368, mainly due to the decline in the wholesale value of blue fin tuna landings.

In the final quarter of 2006, a total of 362,437 kilogrammes of fresh fish were landed at the local fish market, 25.5 per cent more than in the corresponding quarter of 2005.

The wholesale value of fish landings during the quarter amounted to Lm495,823, an increase of 2.4 per cent over the same period in the previous year.