China to release more pork reserves for holidays

BEIJING - China will release more pork reserves to ensure adequate supply for the upcoming New Year and Spring Festival holidays, an official said Monday.

Multiple measures will be taken by the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) and relevant departments to release more frozen pork from the central reserves to meet the holiday season demand, said Wang Bin, an official with the MOC.

The MOC said earlier that 40,000 tons of pork would be released from central reserves for the upcoming holidays.

From Dec 16 to 22, the average pork price in 36 large and medium-sized cities tracked by the MOC came in at 43.76 yuan ($6.27) per kg, down 16.3 percent from the peak at the beginning of November.

Wang said the ministry will continue to keep a close eye on the prices of pork and other daily necessities during the Spring Festival.