China News Service, March 25, Ministry of Commerce spokesperson Gao Feng said on the 25th that since the Spring Festival this year, the prices of domestic edible agricultural products have continued to fall.
Overall, it is difficult for the prices of edible agricultural products to rise sharply.
On the afternoon of the 25th, the Ministry of Commerce held a regular press conference.
At the meeting, a reporter asked: Recently, global food prices have generally risen. Will this aggravate the price pressure on domestic food supply?
What measures will the Ministry of Commerce take to stabilize the domestic food market?
Photographed by reporter Zhao Jun of Xinshe in the peak information picture
The peak explained it from two aspects: food prices and prices of edible agricultural products.
The first is food prices. The peak indicates that the increase in food prices since 2020 is the result of multiple factors.
From the perspective of the international market, the global spread of the new crown pneumonia epidemic, coupled with the influence of various factors such as desert locusts and drought in Southeast Asia, has increased the volatility of international food prices. The world cereal price index has risen for 9 consecutive months since June last year. .
From the perspective of the domestic market, with the rapid recovery of domestic pig production, the demand for corn and soybeans has increased significantly in the short term, and prices have risen, driving the prices of other food varieties to rise.
In addition, the market has strong expectations of rising grain prices, and the mentality of grain production enterprises and farmers to hoard and sell goods also supports the rise in grain prices.
He said that at present, my country's food supply is generally sufficient.
From the perspective of comprehensive production capacity, my country’s grain crops have been harvested year after year, and the total grain output has stabilized at more than 1300 billion jin for six consecutive years.
From the perspective of per capita possession, my country's per capita grain occupancy exceeds 470 kilograms, which is far above the international food security standard of 400 kilograms per capita.
From the perspective of grain stocks, grain stocks are at a relatively high level, and rations such as wheat and rice can meet one year's consumption demand.
In general, there are foundations and conditions to ensure adequate supply and stable operation of the domestic food market, and the supporting conditions for a sharp increase in food prices are not sufficient.
Regarding the prices of major edible agricultural products, the peak said that since the Spring Festival this year, the prices of domestic edible agricultural products have continued to fall.
According to the monitoring of the Ministry of Commerce, last week (March 15-21), the national edible agricultural product market price index dropped by 0.9% compared with the previous week, a cumulative decline of 9.6% for five consecutive weeks, a decrease of 5.6% from the beginning of the year, and a year-on-year decrease of 2.7. %.
Among them, the prices of rice and flour fell steadily compared with the previous week, and were basically the same as the beginning of the year.
The wholesale prices of pork and vegetables dropped by 2.3% and 1.5% respectively from the previous week, and by 19.3% and 9.2% from the beginning of the year.
"At present, the production situation of major domestic agricultural products is stable, the production of live pigs continues to recover, and the supply of poultry, eggs, vegetables, etc. increases as the temperature rises. Overall, the prices of edible agricultural products are unlikely to rise sharply." Gao Feng said.
Gao Feng also emphasized that the Ministry of Commerce will continue to strengthen market monitoring, pay close attention to the supply and demand and price changes of rice, noodles, oil, meat, eggs, vegetables and other commodities, and according to the market situation, cooperate with relevant departments to do a good job of placing the central reserve as appropriate. , Increase market supply in due course.
At the same time, strengthen the guidance to local commerce authorities, implement relevant work to ensure supply and price stabilization, and ensure that the domestic agricultural product market is basically stable.