Consider the following statements regarding salinity of oceans :

I. The North Sea records low salinity because of its location in higher latitudes.

II. The Baltic Sea records low salinity due to influx of river waters.

III. The Mediterranean Sea records higher salinity due to evaporation.

IV. The Black Sea has high salinity due to lack of river water influx.

Which of the statements given above are correct?

The correct statements are II and III.

• Statement II is correct: The Baltic Sea records low salinity (often below 10 ppt) due to the massive influx of freshwater from numerous rivers and low evaporation rates in high latitudes.
• Statement III is correct: The Mediterranean Sea records high salinity (37–39 ppt) because evaporation significantly exceeds precipitation and river runoff.
• Statement I is incorrect: The North Sea actually records higher salinity than expected for its latitude due to the inflow of saline water from the North Atlantic Drift.
• Statement IV is incorrect: The Black Sea has low salinity (about 17–18 ppt) because it receives a heavy influx of freshwater from large rivers like the Danube, Dnieper, and Dniester, and has limited exchange with the Mediterranean.