Party mouthpiece calls for grain self-reliance despite high domestic prices

Party mouthpiece announced new measures to reduce dependence on imported grains despite overflowing domestic stocks and wheat grain and rice prices that are 37%, 42% and 51% higher than import prices, respectively, South China Morning Post reported. “Grain prices are supported by the government’s minimum purchase prices, therefore the possibility for sharp price declines is not big,” said Huang Yiping, an economist from Peking University. “But it is completely unsustainable that domestic prices are 30 to 50 per cent higher than import prices. It is a distortion of resource allocation and a disguised subsidy.” For more on China’s convoluted grain subsidies, see CER’s in-depth report.