Consumer prices climb in China as coronavirus disrupts supplies
Newly released official data on Tuesday shows that Consumer prices in China rose by 5.2 per cent year on year in February as coronavirus has continued to disrupt the country’s markets.
According to the data, the gain is slightly lower than the 5.4 per cent increase in January, showing that in spite of the virus’s slowing spread, shocks to both supply and demand continue to be felt.
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Restrictions on the flow of transport and people, as well as prolonged business closures since stringent lockdown measures were enacted in January have affected food supplies.
A National Bureau of Statistics official said at the same time, rising demand from residents forced to stay at home and hoard food due to enforced social distancing has also helped to push up prices.
Pork prices saw an upsurge of 135.2 per cent year-on-year last month, driving an increase of 3.19 percentage points in Consumer Price Index growth.
But the worst disruption to China’s economy may be behind it.
Chinese health authorities reported just 19 new cases of the novel coronavirus and 17 deaths nationwide on Tuesday, according to statistics released on Tuesday by the National Health Commission
Seventeen of the new cases and all 17 new deaths were recorded in Hubei province, where the outbreak of the disease caused by the virus, Covid-19, first occurred in December last year.
The new tally, representing the lowest daily increase since official reporting began seven weeks ago, came on the same day as General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party Xi Jinping arrived in Wuhan for an official inspection tour.
