A recent report by the Ministry of Commerce predicted that China's grain price will remain stable in the second half of the year, the Xinhua-run China Securities Journal reported Monday.

The report says that China will experience its third consecutive bumper grain harvest this year. Output will reach 113.8 billion kilograms this summer, up 7 percent year on year.

If there is no major weather catastrophe, the year's total grain output will increase dramatically, narrowing the gap between output and demand.

Given the low price of cooking oil products as well as rising production costs, farmers are increasingly reluctant to grow oil-producing plants. The abundance of imported cooking oil products means that supply still exceeds demand, putting a damper on prices.

The report predicts that the prices of agricultural products will fluctuate significantly in the months ahead. In the first six months of the year, production of mutton, beef, pork and fowl reached 36.05 million tons, an increase of 4.4 percent year on year.

However, with live pig stock numbers declining sharply, pork prices have begun to rise. The ministry expects pork prices to continue rising in the second half.

With bird flu apparently under control, consumers are buying more meat and eggs at prices similar to the level before the outbreak.

Editor: Donald