Tuna Sells for Just 10% of 2020 Price at Tokyo New Year Auction

A giant bluefin tuna was sold for 20.84 million yen ($202,000) on Tuesday in the ceremonial first auction of the year at Tokyo’s Toyosu fish market, a price representing just a 10th of last year’s bid.

The 208.4-kilogram (459 pounds) tuna, caught off Oma in northern Japan, was sold for 100,000 yen per kilogram, according to Masahiro Miura, an official at the Tokyo market. The drop reflects a slump in demand as the coronavirus pandemic forced people to refrain from eating out and as authorities ask restaurants in some urban areas to close early.