talk.politics.china

The Portrait of an Olympic Host -- Raising the prices

/2007/08/

China Herald

Weblog with daily updates of the news on a harmonious, socialist
society, from the perspective of internet entrepreneur, new media
advisor and China-consultant
Fons Tuinstra

Friday, August 03, 2007

Raising the prices

Inflation is hitting the country and much of the debate focuses on
price-hikes. China moved from the last period of stiff inflation in the
1990s into a situation that might sometimes more or less resemble those
in a market economy. But how to deal with rising prices is an art that
still dates from the planned economy, as Shanghai Scrap points out.
Time for some re-education of the officials who have to discover that
price-fixing is not done in the open, but like in the West in secretive
and illegal meetings that will be prosecuted when discovered by the
government.

Meanwhile, prices are really going up. This week I saw the price of my
breakfast, mostly a set of baozi's, go up from rmb per piece to
rmb: more than twenty percent.

Update: And the government is starting to investigate price-fixing
cartels. As they should.

Labels: China, economy, government, inflation

posted by Fons Tuinstra at 11:33 AM

/2007/08/