大連出現售價8000元的蘋果

High-priced apples recently raised the eyebrows of consumers in northeastern China's Dalian.

　　New Business, a newspaper based in Dalian, reports apples of extremely high prices are sold at a local supermarket.

　　The apples aren't anything special except that they are a little bit bigger in size and brighter in color compared to ordinary ones. However, their prices range from 68 to 280 yuan for each （US$ 8.50 to $35）, exceeding the general retail price at least several dozen times.

　　The seller told a journalist of New Business that the apples are imported from Japan and transported by air.

　　They were put on market on January 23. Nearly 1,000 have been sold.

　　An unnamed couple bought 400 all at once on last Thursday, spending more than 50,000 yuan （US$6,250） in total. They said they will give the apples to friends and relatives as gifts.

　　Two apples, which are especially large and weigh about 1 kg each, are also for sale at a unit price of 8,000 yuan （US $1,000）.

　　"It is said that only one tree in Japan can bear such big apples, so the quantity is quite limited. Only six such big ones are imported to China this year. We have three in Dalian," said the seller, referring to the two 8,000-yuan apples.

　　Officials with the Ministry of Agriculture said these high-price apples do not feature special agriculture techniques and they are not essentially different from ordinary ones in terms of taste and quality.