China issues inflation warning as rising commodity, consumer prices threaten economic recovery
- China’s Financial Stability and Development Commission, which is headed by Vice-Premier Liu He, released a rare one line statement on Thursday warning about the potential rise of commodity prices and consumer inflation
- Inflation is now a global concern as major central banks, including the US Federal Reserve, have injected massive liquidity to help coronavirus-hit economies
Potential risks and disruptions to China’s continued economic recovery have been highlighted in a rare one line statement from leading financial officials, who warned about the potential rise of commodity prices and consumer inflation.
The monthly release, though, had been pre-empted by a statement on Thursday from China’s Financial Stability and Development Commission, which is headed by Vice-Premier Liu He, President Xi Jinping’s top economic advisory. Analysts said the statement indicated rising worries among policymakers but did not indicate a turnaround of its supportive policy stance.
“We must keep the basic stability of prices and pay particular attention to the trend of commodities prices,” said the commission in what was part of a 1,000-word statement.
However, it also prioritised employment as “the largest livelihood issue”.
The primary target of macroeconomic policies is to protect jobs and market entities
“The primary target of macroeconomic policies is to protect jobs and market entities,” it said. “We must pay attention to ‘adding water to farm fish’, providing relief for corporations and better invigorating market entities.”