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China rejects accusation of exporting inflation
Beijing—Chinese enterprises
are helping to ease global inflation by raising production efficiency,
the country’s top economic planner said in a press statement.
The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) refuted foreign
reports which said China was exporting inflation reflected in its
repeated rises in the consumer price index. The report said price rises
in the manufacturing sector, where most of the country’s exports came
from, were moderate despite rapid general increases. However, it gave no
figures.
Meanwhile, the overall profitability of Chinese enterprises was stable
and their profit ratio was estimated to be 6.4 percent this year, up 0.3
percentage point from the previous year. This meant Chinese enterprises
were not pushing inflationary pressures on to foreign consumers, but
striving to offset the impact of raw material price hikes by raising
production efficiency, which in turn helped to suppress global commodity
prices.
The report cited World Bank figures that showed the margins of
manufacturing enterprises increased despite sustained rises in wages and
bulk commodities prices. A survey carried out in September by the
People’s Bank of China, the central bank, showed the technological
capacity of Chinese enterprises was relatively low compared with foreign
counterparts and companies still had potential to raise efficiency.
China’s production efficiency had a huge impact on prices of its major
export destinations such as the United State and Europe. The price index
of China’s exports to the US had increased 2.2 percent over the same
period last year. The growth rate was still lower than the increase in
the overall price index of US imports, said the Wall Street Journal on
November 14. This indicated that China was not the primary driving force
of price rises in the United States. Market observers said Chinese
exports would continue to help curb inflation in the developed countries
for “a period”.
They were echoed by European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet
who said China’s inflationary pressures were unlikely to spread to
Europe. In late November, Trichet said China’s commodities were much
cheaper those made in Europe and their market share was growing. In view
of these facts, Chinese commodities would help reduce import prices in
euro areas.—Xinhua |
