Trade in ocean-based goods showed remarkable resilience during the recession induced by COVID-19 in 2020, according to the latest available data from a new UNCTAD database.
Such goods include resources either sourced from the ocean, made from marine resources or manufactured for marine activities.
UNCTAD’s ocean trade database, released in April 2022, draws on official statistics from all UN member states.
It shows that trade in ocean-related goods fell by 3.2% in 2020 compared to 2019, faring better than both world trade in goods, which dropped by 5.3%, and trade in ocean-related services, which collapsed – for example, international tourist arrivals declined by 74% in 2020.
“The resilience of trade in ocean goods helped sustain millions of livelihoods amid the slowdown caused by the pandemic,” said David Vivas, an UNCTAD legal officer working on ocean economy issues.
Globally, more than 150 million direct jobs depend on the sound management and sustainable production, export, import and consumption of ocean-based goods and services. These jobs are found in fishing, aquaculture, shipping, coastal tourism, offshore wind energy and marine biotechnology.