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.