Consumer prices in Shanghai were up 5.1 percent last month
compared with a year ago, led by surges in food costs, which make
up about one-third of the Consumer Price Index, according to the
city's Statistics Bureau.
Vegetable production was down sharply last month compared to a
year ago due to Typhoon Krosa, which pushed prices up 55.1 percent
from October, 2006, contributing 1.2 percentage points to the
October index.
The prices of pork and egg dropped slightly from September,
however.
Edible oil prices were up 34.5 percent from a year ago in
October, although the increase is slowing.
The National Day holiday spurred the city's tourism industry
while climbing gold and platinum prices on international markets
lead to higher retail spending.
Travel agencies saw their income jump 7.3 percent from September
as airline ticket and hotel booking jumped in price over the
holiday.
The country's consumer prices last month rose to the highest
rate in more than a decade.
The increase in the key inflation gauge puts further pressure on
the central bank to impose more stringent measures to cool the
economy, analysts said.
The Consumer Price Index in October jumped 6.5 percent compared
to a year earlier, equal to the surge in August, which was the
biggest one-month increase since a seven percent rise in December
1996.
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(Shanghai Daily November 19, 2007)