BEIJING – Prices for fresh vegetables in China have risen by 30.6% in November since last year, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Thursday.
Profits followed an annual increase of 15.9% in October, as floods and other bad weather in recent months hit farms. Although the bureau noted that the supply of vegetables had increased in November, prices were still rising monthly by 6.8%.
Investors have been looking for signs that inflation and economic stagnation could slow growth.
Some food prices rose in China last month, to rise 1.6% year-on-year, amid global economic growth. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations has stated that its global food price index has fallen by 27.3% year-on-year in November and peaked since June 2011.
In China, the statistics office said the price of eggs had dropped by 20.1% in November since last year, while that of freshwater fish had increased by 18%.
Pork prices, the basis of Chinese cuisine, remained very low last year with a year-on-year decline of 32.7% in November. But pork prices have risen by 12.2% since October.
Consumer price index – particularly sensitive to pork prices – overall rose slightly higher than expected in November, up 2.3% against the 2.5% predicted by a Reuters poll.
The manufacturer’s price index increased by 12.9%, higher than expected to increase by 12.4%. But the November rate has seen a decline since October, when the index rose 13.5%.
Manufacturer price index rose by record levels this year as commodity prices rose.