Chart of the Week: Rising pork prices in China squeeze piggy banks

Since the start of the year, China has been plagued by rising food prices, which has largely been attributed to an outbreak of African swine fever, an incurable pig virus. This has resulted in a shortage of pigs, which has pushed up pork prices.

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Since pork is a staple of many Chinese citizens’ diets, and is estimated to make up a large proportion of the consumer basket, this has had a knock-on effect on consumer prices. The CPI for food increased by 10% in August, relative to the previous year’s price. It is not just pork that has been affected, China has also seen an increase in the prices of fish, lamb and beef, as demand grows from consumers seeking cheaper alternatives to pork.

As part of Refinitiv’s expanded China coverage, 300,000 new data series will be added to Datastream over the course of 2019. To accompany this new data offering, Fathom Consulting — in partnership with Refinitiv — has added a selection of new charts to Datastream’s existing library of 9000 images.

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