Reporters' Diary

Feeling the pinch of sagging prices

By (China Daily)
Updated: 2009-02-26 07:45

The extremely cheap prices of farm products may dampen the enthusiasm of farmers, says an article on the website www.rednet.cn. The following is an except:

After farmer Wu Hongchang earned just 47 yuan by selling 1,500 jin of tangerines, he sighed, saying he would dump the remaining tangerines he kept at home before they turn rotten. Previously, he had already thrown away 400 jin.

This year, tangerine growers have welcomed a harvest season but lower prices. What's more, nearly all farm produce, except grains, have seen a large decline in prices this year, especially vegetables and fruits.

The record low prices of produce may remain for a while yet, resulting in an unprecedented backlog of unsold farm products.

Meanwhile, the prices of various types of agricultural materials are still expensive and the investment in the agricultural field is still large, leading to the high costs of farm products. Exorbitant costs and low sales prices will heavily dampen the enthusiasm of farmers in engaging themselves in farm work.

As the financial crisis has hit China, rural migrant workers have been massively laid off by urban employers. And their peers back in the countryside are losing money in growing farm products. It is becoming a new dilemma for China's farmers.

Hot Words

• 大三通 Three Direct Links
• 安居工程 Comfortable Housing Project
• 政務透明 administrative transparency

• 改革開放30年經典熱詞回放－經濟類
• 改革開放30年經典熱詞回放－社會類
• 改革開放30年經典熱詞回放－時政類
• 改革開放30年經典熱詞回放－文化類
• 2008兩會溫總理答記者問精彩語錄
• more

Commentary

From Foreign Press

• China urges bosses to help with labor stability
• CPPCC to address economy, stimulus
• more

Letters

• Corruption top issue for public
• China adopts Food Safety Law
• China's economic growth in 2009
• more