Govt to free 20,000 tons of pork reserves

China will release another batch of 20,000 tons of pork reserves to stabilize prices for the upcoming Spring Festival holiday, according to the website of China Merchandise Reserve Management Center on Thursday.

It is the second time for China to release the frozen pork this year after the first batch of 30,000 tons on Jan 3. Interested parties should register on the website of the center - mrm.com.cn - to compete in the bidding at 1 pm on Jan 9.

Pork, a staple in China, has seen its price soar since last year, due to the short supply affected by African swine fever and cyclical factors.

Chinese authorities have taken measures to help revitalize the hog production, and lowered the tariff on imported pork. In 2019, China released 170,000 tons of frozen pork in seven batches, with the last batch of 40,000 tons in December.

During the week of Dec 30 to Jan 3, the average pork price in 16 provinces and municipalities came in at 45.48 yuan ($6.52) per kilogram, rising 3.4 percent from a week ago, and 159.7 percent from the same period a year ago.