Domestic food prices continued to rise steadily and slightly in 2014

In 2014, the prices of international bulk agricultural products continued to decline in the previous year, and the domestic market supply was generally sufficient, prices fell more and rose less, and imports continued to grow.

Grain prices rose steadily. Supported by the minimum purchase price and temporary reserve policy, domestic grain prices continued to rise steadily and slightly this year. From January to November, the average wholesale price of three kinds of grain (rice, wheat and corn) in the domestic market was 130.23 yuan per 100 jin, up 1.92% year-on-year.

The price of cotton candy continues to fall. By international cotton prices lower, inventory pressure and textile enterprises raw material demand is not prosperous, domestic cotton prices fell sharply. From January to November, China Cotton Price Index (CCIndex) 3128 B-grade cotton sales average price 17457 yuan/ton, down 9.8% year-on-year overall. Affected by factors such as loose supply in the international market and lower crude oil prices leading to lower sea freight, domestic edible oil prices fluctuated downward. From January to November, the factory price of Hubei Grade IV vegetable oil fell 26.9% year-on-year, and the factory price of Shandong Grade I peanut oil fell 24.6% year-on-year. Affected by the pressure of imported sugar and high domestic stocks, domestic sugar prices have continued to fall since mid-2012. The average price of sugar in the 2013/2014 crop season was 4700 yuan per ton, down 14.8% year-on-year, significantly lower than the sugar cost of 5200 yuan per ton.

Pork prices are generally lower than last year. Staged supply pressure and lower-than-expected consumption have led to an overall decline in pork prices since 2011. In the first half of 2014, pork prices continued to decline rapidly. After that, affected by factors such as frozen pork storage policy, pork prices rose for five consecutive months, but the overall level of the whole year was still lower than last year. From January to November, the average price of domestic pork market was 22.44 yuan per kilogram, down 7.5% year-on-year; the price of live pig was 13.44 yuan per kilogram, down 10.3% year-on-year.

Poultry and egg prices rose significantly. Poultry and egg prices fell first and then rose. In the first quarter, it was affected by H7N9 influenza epidemic and seasonal factors. Since April, it began to pick up driven by breeding cost and consumption. The prices of eggs and poultry meat reached the highest level in September and October respectively. From January to November, the average price of white striped chicken was 18.13 yuan per kilogram, up 6.4% year-on-year; the average price of eggs was 10.77 yuan per kilogram, up 8.9% year-on-year.

Beef, mutton and milk prices are running high. Supply remains tight and prices continue to run high. From January to November, the average market price of beef and mutton was 63.23 yuan and 65.43 yuan per kilogram respectively, up 8.2% and 6.3% year-on-year respectively. Raw milk purchase prices generally showed a high decline trend, but still higher than the same period last year. From January to November, the average purchase price of raw milk in the main producing provinces was 4.08 yuan per kilogram, up 14.5% year-on-year.

The price of aquatic products decreased compared with the previous year. The average price of 30 kinds of aquatic products monitored from January to November was 15.44 yuan per kilogram, down 0.63% year-on-year.

Vegetable prices are generally lower than the same period last year. The meteorological conditions are relatively favorable, the overall situation of vegetable production is good, and the price is slightly lower than the level of the same period last year. From January to November, the average wholesale price of 28 kinds of vegetables monitored by the Ministry of Agriculture fell 1.36% year-on-year.