pork Photo:VCG

China will release additional pork into the market from central reserves this week to ensure supply and maintain price stability ahead of the upcoming National Day holidays, the country's top economic planner said on Thursday.

This will be the third batch of pork released from the country's central reserves this year, according to the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), following previous releases on September 17 and September 8.

The NDRC said it will pay close attention to market changes and increase pork supply if necessary. Pig farms are advised to make proper arrangements and sell hogs at a normal pace.

It is estimated that China will release a total of about 200,000 tons of pork reserves in September, based on the quantity already made available combined with expected subsequent releases, Meng Wei, a spokesperson from the NDRC said on Monday, adding that the number of releases in September was the highest in history, and that the release price was lower than the market price.

Domestic hog prices have fallen and since risen from the beginning of this year, and the current prices are now fluctuating between a range of 22-24 yuan ($3.1-3.4) per kilogram, also a historically high level, the NDRC said.

Considering current prices of live pigs are at historic levels and creating significant profit, if the prices rise further, it may lead to a rapid increase in production capacity and a sharp drop in prices over coming quarters, which is not conducive to the long-term development of the industry.

The NDRC said that it will prevent the prices from rising too fast over the next few months.

China's consumer price index, a main gauge of inflation, rose 2.5 percent year-on-year in August, slowing from a 2.7 percent rise during the previous month, lower than  market expectations, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed.

The NDRC said authorities had purchased a total of 520,000 tons of pork from central reserves in the first half of this year when the price of live pigs was low.

Global Times