Inflation is becoming an increasingly important problem in China. The price of pork in particular is crucial.
Consumer prices in China rose by 8.7% in the year to February, the highest rate for more than 12 years. Food prices were 23.3% higher than a year earlier.
Pork has been a cornerstone of the Chinese diet for centuries. Rows of 2,100-year-old terra cotta pigs were recently discovered near Xian, a city better known for terra cotta warriors. China’s 1.3 billion people eat more than 92 billion pounds of pork a year — a fifth of a pound a day for every man, woman and child.
And just as higher gasoline prices can lead to a political reaction in the United States, the Chinese government is particularly worried about soaring pork prices because of their impact on household budgets and the way they can exacerbate income inequality.
No comments:
Post a Comment