The Fish Merchants Committee of the Cairo Chamber of Commerce confirmed in a report addressed to the Chamber’s Chairman, Ayman Al-Ashry, that the fish market is witnessing a state of stability during the current period, coinciding with the approaching Sham El-Nessim season, during which the demand for salted fish increases compared to normal days.
The committee explained that the supply of fish is available in sufficient quantities to meet the needs of citizens, even with the increase in demand, which usually ranges between 10 and 15% during the season, noting that the abundance of production contributed to maintaining price stability at their natural levels.
The committee’s report attributed this stability to the state’s expansion of fish farming projects, in addition to the regularity of fishing seasons in the Red and Mediterranean Bahrain and the lakes, ensuring the flow of supply throughout the year and providing the needs of the local market while moving towards export.
In the same context, one of the committee members explained that the current prices reflect a state of relative stability in the wholesale market, as the price of a kilo of tilapia ranges between 40 and 75 pounds, and mullet between 100 and 180 pounds, while the white shell reaches between 100 and 170 pounds.
The price of sardines ranges between 50 and 120 pounds, and shrimp between 200 and 600 pounds, while some distinctive species reach about 1,000 pounds per kilo depending on the size. The price of squid and calamari ranges between 300 and 400 pounds, the coral ranges between 150 and 300 pounds, the crab ranges between 200 and 400 pounds, and the bourboni ranges between 150 and 205 pounds.
He pointed out that retail prices are usually 10 to 15% higher than wholesale prices, as a result of transportation costs and various trading episodes, stressing that the market is stable despite the high seasonal demand.
