be caught in U.S. waters, processed in a 

 foreign nation and exported to U.S. markets 

 with obvious impUcations for domestic prices, 

 employment, and incomes. 



A more subtle import market effect may 

 also take place. A foreign nation may have in- 

 ventories of fish products produced partly 

 from fish caught in U.S. waters and partly in 

 waters outside U.S. jurisdiction. Foreign sup- 

 pliers could fill U.S. import demands with 

 products made from fish caught outside U.S. 

 jurisdiction and satisfy their own demands or 

 other world markets with fish caught from 

 U.S. waters. Under these circumstances the 

 foreign nation could claim, correctly, that the 

 fish captured in U.S. waters are not entering 

 U.S. markets. However, the end effect in U.S. 

 markets is the same as if fish caught in U.S. 

 waters had been directly exported to U.S. 

 markets. 



In terms of U.S. exports, domestic exporters 

 must be able to deliver products at prices com- 

 petitive with foreign producers. One of the 

 factors affecting competitive status is the level 

 of subsidies received by foreign fleets and/or 

 processors. Thus, to assess the international 

 trade aspects of U.S. fisheries, information on 

 the economics of foreign fleets operating in 

 U.S. waters may be necessary. 



This is a complex area because costs and 

 returns of foreign fleets may include hidden 

 impacts of government intervention, 

 widespread subsidization, and various social 

 welfare policies. 



Public Law 94-265 specifies that foreign 

 fleets fishing in waters under U.S. jurisdiction 



must supply certain information. For 

 economic analysis, that data should include 

 direct information on major inputs and costs 

 of foreign fleets, in a form which permits iso- 

 lation of operating costs in transit to waters 

 under U.S. jurisdiction from the operating 

 costs while in U.S. waters. It should also in- 

 clude information on capital construction 

 costs and foreign subsidies. In addition, physi- 

 cal data on vessel construction, vessel size, 

 and gear characteristics collected for manage- 

 ment purposes may be useful in measuring 

 technical efficiency of the fleets by analysis of 

 variances in catch per unit of effort. 



There is a further need for information on 

 activities of foreign fishing interests which has 

 arisen since the Fishery Conservation and 

 Management Act was passed. The need is for 

 accurate, up-to-date information in three 

 areas: a) foreign investments in U.S. owned 

 fishing vessels; b) foreign investment in proc- 

 essing plants and wholesale operations; and c) 

 the impact of these investments. 



a) Foreign investment in U.S. oivned fishing 

 vessels: By law,72 the U.S. Maritime Ad- 

 ministration must approve the transfer of ma- 

 jority ownership of U.S. documented fishing 

 vessels to foreign ownership. Under a policy 

 published in the Federal Register in 1973,^3 

 NMFS agreed to review all fishing vessel 

 transfer applications, giving due considera- 

 tion to all social and economic factors in- 

 volved on an individual basis, to determine if 

 such transactions were consistent with U.S. 

 interests or if new regulations would be re- 

 quired to protect fishery resources. However, 

 information on the reasons and results of the 

 transfers is very limited. Through January 

 1977, more than 1,200 U.S. fishing vessels, 

 ranging from 5 to 500 ^ross tons, have been 

 transferred to foreign owners or foreign 

 flags. 74 Once the vessels carry foreign flags 

 they are subject to the same regulations and 

 quotas which apply to foreign-built vessels. 



82 



