COVID-19 and the Spanish Celtic Sea fishery: An economic analysis

Abstract

The Celtic Sea fishing fleet is the largest offshore fleet segment in Spain. Over the last three decades, this fleet has experienced a decrease in its number of vessels. This negative trend was intensified by another disruptive factor: The COVID-19 pandemic. Spain, one of the European countries most affected by this pandemic, implemented restrictive strategies in the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic crisis that also affected fishing activities. The aim of this article is to analyze the effects of the COVID-19 crisis on the profitability, revenues and employment of Spanish shipowning companies whose vessels operate in the Celtic Sea. Through a population sample of 64 companies, the performance of variables such as turnover, total assets, number of employees, return on assets, return on equity or profit margin before interest and taxes has been assessed. The results show a variation of − 25% in turnover, − 10% in the number of employees and − 80% in economic and financial profitability. This is a case of failure of collective action, in which the lack of a contingency plan at the public and private level accentuated the negative consequences of the pandemic, especially in the first state of alarm. In addition, a strong interdependence was detected between the catches of the most valuable species and the activity of the HORECA channel.