A public spat in China this week between a top government body and an important industry has shed some light on the Communist Party’s inner workings. The reason? Cooking oil. Bear with me on this one.
In early December, the National Development and Reform Commission, China’s state economic planner, convened cooking oil producers in Beijing. The commission requested that producers increase cooking oil supplies in the run-up to next year’s Chinese New Year holiday – without lifting prices. (more…)