According to a revised central government pricing catalogue issued on May 6 by the National Development and Reform Commission to solicit public opinion, China will further reduce the number of items under government price control to 25, which is 80 percent lower than in 2001.

In the revised catalogue, the categories under price control have been reduced by 40 percent in comparison with 2001. Only seven categories are listed in the revised catalogue: natural gas, water supply, electricity, special drugs and blood, key transport services, important postal services, and essential professional services. The items under control have also plummeted to 25, 80 percent fewer than in 2001. The key central reserves, tobacco leaves, commercial explosives, fertilizer, teaching materials, military products, and basic telecommunication services are being eliminated from the catalogue.

The Government Pricing Catalogue is the power list and negative list of the government’s rights with regard to pricing. The government can determine the prices of listed goods or set the benchmark prices and the range of fluctuation, which are called government pricing and government guided price respectively. The prices of all those goods not included in the list are determined by the market and the government has no right to interfere.

Compared with the government pricing catalogue of 2001, the revised one has three major changes: Firstly, the categories under price control have decreased by 46 percent, while the items have dropped by 80 percent. Secondly, the revised catalogue offers a more specific and clearer textual explanation of the items under government pricing, compared with the previous one which uses pricing contents, comments and table notes to explain that. Thirdly, the name of the catalogue has changed from Pricing Catalogues by the State Development Planning Commission and Relevant Departments of the State Council into Central Government Pricing Catalogue, which is simpler and less unwieldy. 

This article was edited and translated from 《中央定价项目减至25项》, source: People's Daily Overseas Edition.