China to end salt monopoly
November 24, 2014 Category Macro-economy, Weekly
China is to end a monopoly over the production and sale of table salt, dismantling a system that has been in place for more than 2,000 years and was run by a state monopoly since 1950. The move reflects China’s drive to deregulate state-run sectors to encourage greater competition among firms and tackle market inefficiency. China is the world’s biggest consumer of salt, including that used in the chemical industry, according to mineral consultancy Roskill Information Services. It accounts for nearly a quarter of global demand in 2012. The disbanding of the salt monopoly will start in 2016 and should be complete by 2017. It is not yet known whether foreign firms would be able to operate independently after the monopoly was lifted. However, the reform liberates salt prices, and opens up the wholesale trade of edible salt and the distribution market. China’s salt monopoly is currently overseen by the China National Salt Industry Corp, which says it ensures the country has stable supplies and that salt is iodized.
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