A red tuna sold at a fish market auction in Tsukiji for 9.75 million yen ($82,600, or almost 70,000 euros) has become the second highest price ever recorded in Japanese history, according to the heads of the Tokyo fish market.

The 325 kilogram fish was caught in the Tsugaru strait, which separates the islands of Honshu and Hokkaido, and was transported to the port of Oma, in the province of Aomori, according to the Kyodo agency.

A Tsukiji market head said that tuna caught in Japanese waters is worth so much because of the strong demand by luxury restaurants and “sushi bars” before New Year’s celebrations.

There are also fewer tuna of this type this winter due to storms that in the last several weeks have made fishing difficult on the Japanese coast, according to the same sources.

The most expensive red tuna ever recorded at an auction was in January 2001, when one reached 20.2 million yen ($171,186).

According to experts, one large tuna yields about 6,000 portions of sushi or sashimi, the emblematic dish of Japanese gastronomy, in which the fish is prepared raw, cut with geometric precision, and seasoned with soy sauce and green horseradish.