Giant tuna sells for £470,000 at Tokyo auction

A bluefin tuna, caught off northern Japan, has fetched a record 56.49 million yen (£473,000) in the first auction of the year at Tokyo's Tsukiji fish market.

The price for the 269-kilogram (593 lbs) tuna beat last year's record of 32.49 million yen (£272,000).

The price translates to 210,000 yen per kilo (£1,760 per lb) – also a record, said Yutaka Hasegawa, a Tsukiji market official.

The winning bidder is Kiyoshi Kimura, president of a sushi restaurant chain.

Reports quote him saying that he wants to "liven up Japan" and help it recover from last year's devastating tsunami and economic stagnation.