Bluefin tuna sells for $637,000 at Tokyo auction

Tokyo : A bluefin tuna was sold on Thursday for 74.2 million yen ($637,000) in the first auction of the year at the famous Tsukiji fish market in Tokyo, Japanese officials said. The amount paid for the 212 kg tuna, which was caught in off Oma in Aomori prefecture, is about 350,000 yen (some $3,005) per kilo and is the second highest ever at a New Years auction at Tsukiji market, Efe news reported. For the sixth straight year, the winning bid was made by the president of the sushi restaurant chain Sushi Zanmai, Kiyoshi Kimura. The historic record is held by Kimura himself, who in 2013 paid 155.4 million yen ($1.33 million) for a bluefin tuna. As usual, Kimura joked in front of the media, saying that the tuna was "a little expensive". The famous 64-year-old businessman seeks to capture media attention and attract the public to his restaurants with these purchases. - IANS