In the 51st week of 2025 (December 12th to December 18th), the Chinese distant-water squid market finally showed signs of stabilizing. Driven by the concentrated release of processing demand at the end of the year, the prices of various specifications of squid at Zhejiang Agricultural Center have rebounded, and market sentiment has slightly improved.

Southeast Pacific squid: Restocking demand has driven up quotations

  In the 51st week, the average settlement price of Southeast Pacific squid at Zhejiang Agricultural Center was 14,995.11 yuan per ton, with a transaction volume of 225 tons, remaining the same as last week. In terms of comprehensive quotations, the prices of large heads, carcasses and large whole fish have risen by more than 500 yuan per ton, while those of small whole fish and tail fins have increased by 250 to 400 yuan per ton. As the year-end production scheduling peak of processing enterprises approaches, the enthusiasm of downstream purchasers has increased, and the number of spot inquiries has significantly risen. The short-term market demand has strengthened, and Prices have shown signs of stabilizing after a decline.

  In terms of fishing in Peru, the fishing season for giant squid (Dosidicus gigas) is coming to an end. If the catch exceeds the supplementary limit of 38,859 tons, the 2026 quota will be utilized and compensation measures will be taken. The production department has simultaneously relaxed restrictions, allowing some dolphinfish fishing vessels to switch to squid fishing, which is equivalent to substantially lifting the quota constraints. Recently, the size of the landed squid has been relatively large, but its quality has declined, posing challenges for export-grade processing.

Southwest Atlantic squid: Limited fluctuations during the destocking stage.

  There have been no transactions of Southwest Atlantic (off-line) squid this week. However, the comprehensive quotations show that the 100-150g and 200-300g specifications have been reduced by about 250 yuan per ton, while the rest of the varieties remain stable. Due to the start of the new fishing season, some quotations have slightly declined. The new fishing season in Argentina will kick off on January 2, 2026, and fishing vessels are in the final stage of preparation.

Other production areas: Overall stable operation.

Data from Weihai International Marine Commodity Trading Center shows that the prices of Peruvian equatorial squid and Argentine squid have both risen slightly. The quotations for squid from the Northwest Pacific and the Indian Ocean remain stable, with no significant fluctuations observed. The volume of self-caught squid entering Zhoushan Port has increased compared with the previous period, and the market supply remains stable.

Market Observation and Outlook.

  In the 51st week, the Chinese distant-water squid market as a whole showed a trend of "stabilization and recovery". Southeast Pacific squid has become the main force supporting the market. The pre-holiday restocking and the approaching end of the Peruvian production season have jointly pushed up prices. In contrast, the Southwest Atlantic squid is still in the period of destocking and the transition to the new season, and its price response is relatively moderate. Overall, this round of recovery is more of a phased adjustment before the festival rather than a trend reversal. In the short term, pre-holiday demand may continue to support a moderate upward trend in prices, but whether a sustained rebound can be formed still depends on the progress of subsequent processing orders and inventory digestion.