China Top Planner Probes Gains in Commodity Prices

The National Development and Reform Commission, China's top planner, signaled the government's increased concerns over high commodity prices by dispatching officials in charge of pricing and market operations to investigate markets in some provinces, according to the commission's official WeChat blog. While commodity prices may stay high for some time, there is no basis for sustained rallies and the prices of some products have fallen since the authorties took action, according to the blog post. The rapid gains in prices of raw materials have impacted the costs of downstream industries and small businesses, which can trigger risks, the blog said.