$1.3 Million Bluefin Tuna Sparks Economic Optimism In Japan

A bluefin tuna sold for 207 million yen ($1.3 million) during Tokyo’s first auction of the year, fueling hopes for Japan’s ongoing economic recovery, Kyodo News reported.

The prized fish was jointly purchased by an intermediate wholesaler and the Sushi Ginza Onodera restaurant chain. I Photo: Kyodo News

The sale was the second-highest price on record for the event.

The auction, held at Tokyo’s Toyosu Market, began at 5:10 a.m. and featured a 276-kilogram tuna caught off the coast of Oma in Aomori Prefecture. The prized fish was jointly purchased by an intermediate wholesaler and the Sushi Ginza Onodera restaurant chain.

“The year’s first tuna brings good luck. We want to make people smile with food,” said Shinji Nagao, president of the sushi restaurant operator.

The record for the highest price remains unbroken since 2019, when a bluefin tuna sold for 333.6 million yen during the first New Year auction after Tokyo’s iconic Tsukiji Fish Market relocated to Toyosu, as reported by Mainichi Shimbun.