Chapter 2 Media Article

http://www.philly.com/philly/news/nation_world/20071119_Bluefin_tuna_supply_for_sashimi_runs_low.html

"Bluefin tuna supply for sashimi runs low", Nov. 19, 2007

This article refers to the depleting supply of Bluefin tuna. Bluefin tuna, the largest tuna, has been over fished for the past few decades. The low supply of tuna caused the price of it to increase which decreased its demand. In the past year, wholesale tuna prices increased by 20%. In Japan, imports decreased 24 percent compared to last year for the first quarter of this year. However, in the American market for fresh tuna, their imports have been on the rise which will decrease the demand for Bluefin tuna. The Japanese are now going to try to get their Bluefin tuna supply back up.

Relationship to Ch. 2 – supply and demand

This article relates to chapter 2 because the supply of Bluefin tuna is depleting which relates to supply, demand. The supply of it has decreased due to over fishing which has caused its price to increase. The increase in price led to a decrease in quantity demanded. Also, the United States market for tuna has been increasing their imports. The American tuna and the Japanese tuna can be seen as substitute products in the international market. As the price of the Bluefin tuna increased, the demand for American tuna has also increased. The article also relates to scarcity in the previous chapter because Bluefin tuna is a scarce land resource that is becoming even more scarce.

I now understand more about how markets operate. I believe the American fresh tuna market, second largest in the world, will soon catch up to the Japanese fresh tuna market. Since the price of the Bluefin tuna went up, the demand for less expensive American tuna also went up. At the moment, Japan is decreasing in imports whereas the United States is increasing in imports. I hypothesize that the United States will go from having the second largest fresh tuna market to first within a few years since the Japanese will not be able to catch up with their low supply of Bluefin tuna.

Chapter 1 Media Article

http://allafrica.com/stories/200709220046.html

"Uganda: Fish Scarcity Hits Country", allAfrica.com Sept. 21, 2007

The article refers to fish becoming scarce in Kampala, Uganda and districts near Lake Victoria. It isn’t just any ordinary fish, it is the Nile Perch, a highly regarded seafood in Europe. Due to the scarcity, prices of fish have significantly increased. The scarcity has also put fishermen and factories into trouble. Since fishermen are catching less and less fish now, some choose to catch immature fish illegally. Some factories are suspended whereas others are even closed down due to the lack of fish. It is expected that the lake will be depleted of fish in three to five years if actions are not taken to fix the problem.

Relationship to Ch. 1 - resources (land), scarcity

Every resource on earth is scarce. As the amount of it goes down, the demand will go up which will cause the price of it to go up. It is possible to see this trend in Kampala Uganda. Since the amount of Nile Perch decreased significantly, the demand for it increased significantly which also increased the price of it significantly. The lack of Nile Perch has also created an overabundance of fishermen which caused them to illegally catch immature fish. This definitely does not help the situation and will actually hinder it. If this continues on, there will be no more Nile Perch in Kampala in the future.

Fishermen and factories in Kampala should put all their efforts into getting the Nile Perch population back up instead of depleting it. Currently, they are already having trouble with the low population of fish but what will happen when it’s all gone? Fishermen will be unemployed, all the factories would be closed, and Uganda, which exports over 30,000 tonnes of fish annually will suffer economically. A wise man once said “the first best time to do something is yesterday, the second best time is today”. People of Kampala should consider this wise quote and start fixing the problem today before it’s too late.