BEIJING: China's state planning agency has told consumer giant Unilever to delay its plans to raise its prices in April as the government pursues its battle against rising inflation, the Financial Times reported on Saturday.
Both Unilever and Procter & Gamble were planning to raise detergent and soap prices by up to 15 percent from April 1, citing soaring raw material costs. The planned move caused a rush on purchases in Chinese department stores.
But Unilever said it had "chosen to comply" with a request from the National Development and Reform Commission to postpone the price hikes, according to the Financial Times report.
Chinese consumer prices rose 4.9 percent in February from a year earlier, higher than expected and just short of a 28-month high of 5.1 percent in November.
China has raised interest rates three times and bank reserve requirements six times since October, and more increases are expected as it battles to keep inflation within an average of 4 percent this year.
Beijing has also used direct "administrative" measures aimed at capping price rises, including crackdowns on hoarding and price "speculation" in rural areas.
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