Total fish catch has increased from approximately 38 million tons in 1960 to 137 million tons in 2003 – an increase of 260 percent representing an annual rate of growth of 3.0 percent.  During this time period, fish has also emerged as one of the largest export commodities in the world with 2003 exports estimated at US$63.5 billion.  This dwarfs global trade in other commodities such as coffee, cocoa, rubber, sugar, tea, tobacco and rice.

 

Developing economies with control over key fishing grounds are playing an increasingly important role in the global fish industry with their share of global exports having grown from 37 percent in 1976 to 48 percent in 2003.