Beijing hints at price controls

China’s Premier Wen Jiabao suggested on Friday that the government could impose limited price controls to curb the effects of inflation, the Financial Times reported. Wen, who spoke with reporters at a supermarket in Guangzhou, said that the government would provide subsidies for low-income consumers, punish hoarders and commodity market manipulation, and possibly introduce price controls on food. Vegetable prices in particular have contributed much to the country’s 4.4% year-on-year inflation rate in October. Over the past year vegetable prices have climbed by more than 60%, largely due to a combination of higher demand and low supply as a result of adverse weather around the globe. The rise in prices has led to incidents of consumer hoarding of food products.