Beijing said it will release 210,000 tons of sugar reserve to ease mounting price pressures, state media reported. The Ministry of Commerce said it will auction the sugar on the open market and will release more from its stockpiles if necessary. It is the seventh time this year that China has moved to stabilize sugar prices. Beijing has auctioned 1.71 million tons of sugar since December of last year. Prices hit a record RMB6,000 (US$901) per ton during October, double the prices seen over 2008. China consumed 14 million tons of sugar last year and is expected to need a further 800,000 tons this year. Beijing imported 1 million tons of sugar over the first eight months of this year, an increase of 11.4% from 2009.