Golden Mackerel, Golden Squid, Golden Flatfish... Seafood Prices Also 'Soar'

July Seafood Consumer Price Index 120.13... 7.5% Increase Compared to 5-Year Average
Government Expands Stockpiling Projects and Conducts Daily Price Monitoring

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Haeyoung] Prices of seafood products commonly sought by the public, such as mackerel and squid, are rising. The government plans to stabilize seafood prices by expanding stockpiling projects and strengthening supply and demand monitoring, including daily price checks.

According to the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries on the 16th, the seafood consumer price index stood at 120.13 as of July this year, marking a 7.5% increase compared to the average of the past five years (2016?2020). It decreased by 1.5% compared to the previous month and rose by 0.3% compared to the previous year, but the price increase is still considerable when compared to the five-year average.

This is attributed to the price increase of mackerel and squid, which have high weights among the 14 items that make up the seafood consumer price index. Mackerel production as of the cumulative total in July was 101.8% of the average year, but last month's production was only 3,842 tons, which is 56% of the average year (2016?2020 average). Squid production in coastal waters was 74% of the average year as of the cumulative total in July. Accordingly, last month's retail prices of mackerel and squid reached 121.4% and 139.5% of the average year, respectively.

For major farmed fish species such as flatfish (Gwang-eo), the wholesale price in July was 18,000 KRW per kilogram, which is 128.7% of the average year, due to a shortage of farmed supply in production areas and increased demand during the vacation season.

The government plans to expand the scale of stockpiling projects and support consumers' seafood purchase costs to stabilize seafood prices.

First, the government will increase the stockpiling project budget from the previous 70.5 billion KRW to 100.5 billion KRW. From the 30th of this month until the 18th of next month, just before Chuseok, it plans to release up to 9,200 tons of six popular fish species at prices discounted by 10?30% compared to market prices. The supply volume to the market will increase by 1.17 times compared to normal times. In the second half of the year, up to 18,000 tons will be purchased.

Price management for the six popular fish species will also be strengthened. In collaboration with the Korea Maritime Institute (KMI) Fisheries Observation Center, price trends will be monitored daily, and a public-private consultative body will be formed to operate a continuous supply and demand monitoring system.

Additionally, to ease consumer burdens, the scale of the mutual discount support project, which provides 10,000 to 20,000 KRW per person when purchasing seafood, will be expanded from 39 billion KRW to 59 billion KRW, with more than six discount events planned in the second half of the year.

Minister of Oceans and Fisheries Moon Seong-hyeok stated, "As the seafood industry continues to face difficulties due to COVID-19 and the holidays such as Chuseok approach, there are concerns about price increases. We will actively promote consumption while steadily implementing projects to alleviate the burden on the public's grocery expenses."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.