Good supply of blue whiting driving prices down in Moscow

According to wholesale companies, there has been an active decrease of prices for blue whiting on freshfrozen fish market in Moscow, analysts of www.fishnet-russia.com (www.fishnet.ru) concluded after analyzing the current situation on the market.

The blue whiting fishery has been continued both by Russian and foreign vessels. The Russian shipowners inform that the fishing conditions have been fairly good thanks to favourable weather conditions. The average catch rates have amounted to ca.70-80 tonnes per day with the group's total harvest making 1200-1500 tonnes daily.

Icelandic vessels have been showing good results on the blue whiting grounds. More specifically, from January to March 2009 the fleets harvested more than 53,000 tonnes of blue whiting, 17,000 tonnes up on the same period last year.

As per mid-April 2009 in Norway out of the total quota of 220,673 tonnes only 31,413 have remained uncovered. The bulk of blue whiting have been sent for food processing to UK and Irish plants. About 2/3 of the total Norwegian harvest in 2009 have been purchased by the processors from the above mentioned two countries.

As per the fourth week of April 2009 the number of blue whiting offers on Moscow's market has been growing along with active decrease of prices.

In Murmansk blue whiting 20-25+ has been offered at ca.RUB24.00-24.50 per kilo.

In Saint Petersburg blue whiting 20+ from the new harvest has been offered at RUB26.00-26.50 per kilo.

In Moscow blue whiting has been sold at RUB27.50 per kilo.

Blue whiting fillets made by Murmansk Trawl Fleet have been sold ex-coldstore in Saint Petersburg at RUB39.00 per kilo.