36 Ｍillion Yen Ｗinning Bid in Last Tsukiji New Year Auction

Tokyo's historic Tsukiji fish market held its final New Year auction Jan. 5, and the highest bid of 36.45 million yen ($323,800) was for a 405-kilogram bluefin tuna. Intermediate wholesaler Yamayuki, based in the capital’s Chuo Ward, outbid competitors with the sum equivalent to 90,000 yen per kilogram for the fish caught off Oma, Aomori Prefecture, in the far north of Japan’s main island of Honshu. “I’m so glad because I had my sights set on making the winning bid for the tuna since it was landed at the end of last year,” said Yamayuki president Yukitaka Yamaguchi with a gleeful chuckle. Kiyomura Corp., operator of the Sushizanmai restaurant chain, which had won the market’s New Year early morning auction for six straight years until last year, paid 30.40 million yen for a 190-kilogram bluefin tuna caught off Oma. The bid, which translates into 160,000 yen a kilogram, was the highest price paid by weight.