China's Tight Monetary Policy

China's April inflation near decade-high levels

April's consumer prices rose 8.5 percent compared with the same month last year, the National Statistics Bureau said. That was up from March's 8.3 percent rate and just short of February's 8.7 percent, the highest inflation in 12 years.

"It is still far too early to claim success in the battle against inflation," Goldman Sachs economists Yu Song and Hong Liang said in a report to clients.

That's got to be the understatement of the decade, lol. Were there people in China claiming success based on inflation near decade-high levels? I hope Goldman Sachs is paid the big bucks for such awesome economic analysis. I remind myself that this is free analysis fit for public consumption though. Who knows what they say behind closed doors?

A senior economic official, Vice Premier Wang Qishan, said Friday that Beijing will stick to tight monetary policies to cool inflation, but announced no new initiatives.

Seriously? How does he keep a straight face when he says that? I'd bust out laughing personally. If you too see humor here then I offer a serious warning. If you are currently drinking a beverage I suggest you put it down and swallow before reading the next quote. Otherwise, you are likely to spray it out your nose. I'm not saying that it happened to me. I'm not saying it didn't either though.

April 16, 2008
China's GDP Grew 10.6 Pct in 1Q

Some speculate that the tremendous level of negative interest rates and inflationary pressure are encouraging consumers to save less and increase consumption.

Some? What the heck are the rest speculating? Let me guess. China's tremendously negative interest rates are a sign of a tremendously strong economy and tremendously tight monetary policy!