Upward pressure on oil and raw materials may push up the cost of daily commodities, raising the spectre of inflation, a senior official at China's top economic planning body said. Zhu Hongren, who is in charge of economic growth at the National Development and Reform Commission, told state media the potential for inflation is one of the problems China is facing, along with the spree in fixed asset investment. For example, crude oil has been selling for around US$70 per barrel, or 40% more than last year, while copper doubled in price in a year to almost US$9,000 in May � although it has been declining since. �The price of raw materials have increased costs for producers and will eventually push up prices of finished products,� Zhu said. However, he ruled out immediate monetary measures such as interest rate hikes.
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