Seoul, June 6 (ZXS) -- On June 20 this month, Japan's Tokyo Electric Power Company began trial operation of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant nuclear contaminated water discharge equipment, which is expected to last for two weeks, and plans to officially start nuclear sewage discharge this summer, which has caused widespread concern in South Korea.
South Korea's "salt shortage" rumors pushed up the share price of salt stocks
According to the "Korean Economy" local time on the 19th, due to the date of the discharge of contaminated water from Japan's Fukushima nuclear power plant into the sea, the news that South Korean consumers rushed to buy salt out of anxiety triggered rumors of "salt shortage", and the stock price of salt-related foods was greatly pushed up, and the stock price of South Korea's "Quan brand" food hit a 19-week high on the 52th.
According to reports, there has been a shortage of salt in South Korea's large supermarkets recently. South Korea's large supermarket "Easy Buy" salt sales from the 1st to the 14th of this month increased by 55.6% compared with the same period last year, and the sales of coarse salt (also known as "Tianil salt" in South Korea increased by 118.5%. Lotte Mart's salt sales increased by 30% over the same period. Due to the sharp increase in salt demand, some large supermarkets have posted notices of "difficulty in supply and demand of coarse salt", or implemented measures such as purchase restrictions.
With the increase in salt demand and the decrease in sea salt production this year, South Korea's salt prices have also shown a strong upward trend. According to the Korea Agricultural and Fishery Food Distribution Association, the retail price of 5 kilograms of coarse salt was 16,13406 won (about 74.93 yuan) on the 11188th of this month, up 62.53% from 19,8 won (about 7901.44 yuan) a year ago. Compared with the previous year's 16,69 won (about 7.2018 yuan), it is 2022.<>% higher (the price of previous years refers to the three-year average price excluding the highest and lowest prices during the five-year period from <> to <>).
However, the South Korean government said that although the number of consumers buying sea salt has increased, there has been no abnormal state in the entire industry. Song Sang-geun, vice minister of South Korea's Ministry of Marine and Fisheries, said at the press conference earlier this month, "After many field visits, there are no signs of hoarding of sea salt at the level of the processing and distribution industry." "Direct transactions account for about 7 to 8 percent of total volume, and we don't think the increase in direct transactions will have much impact on overall salt supply and origin prices." ”
Song Xianggen also said about the shortage of coarse salt: "The fundamental reason for the recent shortage of daily salt and the rise in salt price is that the production from April to May was reduced due to meteorological conditions, and it is expected that production will return to normal from June to July, and the production of coarse salt has gradually recovered from this month, so there is no supply problem." ”
South Korea's total seafood imports from Japan fell by 5% in May
In addition to the impact of coarse salt sales due to the plan to enter the sea with nuclear wastewater, the amount of seafood imported by South Korea from Japan has also changed significantly. According to Yonhap News Agency, citing trade statistics disclosed by the South Korean Customs Office on the 19th, South Korea imported 5,2129 tons of seafood and aquatic products from Japan in May this year, a decrease of 30.6% over the same period last year. From January to March this year, South Korea's total imports of seafood from Japan continued to increase, showing a double-digit decline for two consecutive months since April.
In addition, South Korea's total seafood imports from Japan in May were US$5.1406 million, down 7.1% year-on-year, and imports continued to decline for two consecutive months since April.
In March 2011, an earthquake measuring 3.9 on the Richter scale struck off the northeastern coast of Japan, triggering a tsunami, causing a serious nuclear leakage accident at units 0 to 1 of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant operated by TEPCO. In September of the same year, the South Korean government banned the import of seafood products from eight prefectures, including Fukushima, a measure that continues to this day.
Yonhap News Agency quoted analysis on the 19th that when Japan is about to start the discharge of nuclear sewage, the South Korean people are increasingly worried about the import of Japanese aquatic products. The news said that Song Xianggen said at a press conference on the 16th that even if the safety of Fukushima discharged nuclear sewage is scientifically proven, as long as the safety of Fukushima aquatic products has not been verified and South Korean citizens do not feel safe, the import ban cannot be lifted. In the past two months, the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries, together with the coast guard and local governments, has been conducting a census of the indications of origin of companies that handle Japanese seafood products, and plans to conduct a second census.
Civil rallies, political party denunciations... South Korea's anti-nuclear pollution water entering the sea has increased
According to media reports, on the day that Japan's Tokyo Electric Power Company trial operation of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant nuclear contaminated water discharge equipment, about 3000,<> fishermen from all over South Korea held a large-scale rally near the National Assembly Hall in Seoul to strongly oppose the discharge of contaminated water from Fukushima, Japan, while urging the South Korean government to actively protect the rights and interests of South Korean fishermen.
Fishermen who participated in the rally said that the discharge of nuclear-contaminated water into the sea violated the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, and urged the South Korean government to file a lawsuit in the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, while demanding that Japan adopt safer methods such as concrete curing to dispose of or preserve nuclear-contaminated water for a long time.
While the number of popular condemnations is growing, many political parties in South Korea have also spoken out against the Fukushima nuclear pollution water discharge plan.
According to Yonhap News Agency reported on the 19th, for Japan's Fukushima nuclear power plant polluted water discharged into the sea, South Korea's largest opposition party Common Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung condemned that the South Korean government is more active than Japan to promote the safety of nuclear sewage. He pointed out that the ROK should also clearly express its opposition like other affected countries, and jointly with other injured countries, appeal to the International Tribunal for the Sea and request that interim measures be taken to stop Japan's nuclear sewage from being discharged into the sea.
In addition, opposition parties such as the Justice Party of Korea and the Progress Party have also publicly demanded that the Yoon Seok-hyeol government and the ruling National Power Party take concrete measures to oppose Japan's discharge of nuclear-contaminated water into the sea. (End)