Page 25 - ARUBA TODAY

BUSINESS Monday 7 May 2018
A25

Lobster prices high, but dropping as summer approaches

By PATRICK WHITTLE starting to heat up, which cal for lobster prices to fall
Associated Press means prices already from April to May, but the
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — are starting to track back May price is still about $1.50
Lobster prices are high in down, industry members above average, accord-
the U.S. right now, but mem- said. ing to Urner Barry data.
bers of the industry expect U.S. lobstermen who were Maine's lobster catch fell to
them to come down soon getting $10 per pound for about 111 million pounds
as the Canadian catch their catch at the dock last year after setting a re-
creeps up and America's in March are now getting cord of 132.5 million pounds
summer haul gets going. closer to $6, said Spencer the previous year. It was
One-pound lobsters, which Fuller, a lobster buyer and the lowest total since 2011,
Mainers call "chicks," are the president of the Maine though still much more
selling for about $12 per Lobster Dealers' Associa- than the typical catch in
pound to consumers, tion. Consumers can ex- the 1990s and early 2000s.
which is a couple of dollars pect to start seeing that More than 80 percent of
per pound more than six price shift show up at the the nation's catch typically
months ago. seafood counter soon. comes to shore in Maine,
The U.S. lobster industry, "You had weather, noth- although Massachusetts, In this June 12, 2015, file photo, a lobster is pulled from crate in
based heavily in Maine, is ing around, fairly steady New Hampshire and Rhode Kennebunkport, Maine.
in a slow mode as fisher- demand, it just drives the Island also have significant Associated Press
men get ready to pull traps price crazy," Fuller said. lobster fisheries.
in the summer. "Now we're heading to- Fresh, live lobster is his- the lobster "off season." ter in Santa Ana, Califor-
The lack of fishing effort and ward normalcy." torically a summer food Exports to China also have nia. American catch also
high prices have caused The wholesale price of in New England, but the increased, which has result- appeared to suffer due to
some in the seafood indus- 1¼-pound lobsters fell from growing globalization of ed in some worry about a bad weather during the
try to raise the possibility $10.78 per pound in April to the lobster business is start- potential lobster shortage already-slow winter season
of a shortage, but indus- $8.51 per pound this month ing to change that. That in the U.S., said Michael this year, he said.
try members say quite the in the New England market, means demand is some- King, purchasing director of "It's a double whammy of
opposite is true. Canada's according to business pub- times higher in the cooler King's Seafood Co., which lower supply plus increase
spring fishing season is just lisher Urner Barry. It's typi- months once considered operates a distribution cen- in demand," King said.q

VW board eyes damage claims against former CEO Winterkorn

By DAVID McHUGH tribunal. But he's far from in engines to activate pollu-
KIRSTEN GRIESHABER the clear. For one thing, he tion controls when being
BERLIN (AP) — Former Volk- could risk arrest if he trav- tested in government labs
swagen CEO Martin Win- els to another country that and turning them off when
terkorn may never see the would be willing to send on the road.
inside of a courtroom in the him to the U.S. When he resigned in Sep-
United States in connection And on top of any possible tember 2015 Winterkorn
with the company's diesel attempt by Volkswagen to said he was unaware of
emissions scandal. But his seek damages, Winterkorn any wrongdoing on his
legal troubles are far from is among suspects being part. He later told the Ger-
over. investigated in a criminal man parliament that he did
A VW spokesman says the probe by prosecutors in the not know of the emissions
German automaker's su- German city of Braunsch- cheating during the years it
pervisory board is check- weig, located in Volkswa- was going on.
ing whether it can demand gen's home region. German prosecutors
damage claims from Win- Volkswagen has admitted say their investigation is
terkorn in connection with to programming its diesel ongoing.q
the company's diesel emis-
sions cheating scandal.
Michael Brendel tells Ger-
man news agency dpa
"the investigation has been
going on for quite some
while and is conducted in-
dependently from the au-
thorities' investigation."
German newspaper Frank-
furter Allgemeine Sonntag-
szeitung reported Sunday In this Jan. 19, 2017 file photo Martin Winterkorn, former CEO of
that Winterkorn could lose the German car manufacturer 'Volkswagen', arrives for a ques-
his property in connection tioning at an investigation committee of the German federal
with the company's investi- parliament in Berlin.
gation. Associated Press
Winterkorn, 70, was indict-
ed Thursday in the United diesel emissions cheating forbids extradition of its
States on charges of fraud scandal. It is unlikely that citizens except to another
and conspiracy stem- he could be extradited European Union member
ming from the company's — Germany's constitution state or to an international