China raises minimum wheat purchase prices for 2012

 　　BEIJING, Sept. 28 (Xinhua) -- China's top economic planner announced Wednesday that it will raise the minimum purchase prices for wheat from farmers in 2012 to boost grain output.

　　The move "aims to protect farmers' enthusiasm to grow grains and further stimulate¹ grain production," the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said in a statement.

　　The minimum purchase price for white wheat in the country's major wheat-producing areas will be increased to 102 yuan (16 U.S. dollars) per 50 kg, up 7 yuan from the 2011 price, said the NDRC.

　　It said the minimum purchase prices for red and mixed wheat will both rise 9 yuan to 102 yuan per 50 kg next year.

　　Wheat is one of China's major grains, which feeds its population of 1.3 billion people mainly with domestically-produced grains.

　　A stable food supply is crucial to China's efforts to check inflation, as food prices account for about a third of the weighting in its consumer price index (CPI) calculation, a main gauge² of inflation.

　　China's CPI rose to a 27-month year-on-year high of 6.5 percent in July and weakened slightly to 6.2 percent in August.

　　The country's grain output rose 2.9 percent last year to 546.41 million tonnes, marking the seventh consecutive³ year of output growth.

　　The Ministry⁴ of Agriculture expects the output to reach a record high of 550 million tonnes this year.

1 stimulate   

vt.刺激，使兴奋；激励，使…振奋

参考例句：

• Your encouragement will stimulate me to further efforts.你的鼓励会激发我进一步努力。
• Success will stimulate the people for fresh efforts.成功能鼓舞人们去作新的努力。

2 gauge   

v.精确计量；估计；n.标准度量；计量器

参考例句：

• Can you gauge what her reaction is likely to be?你能揣测她的反应可能是什么吗？
• It's difficult to gauge one's character.要判断一个人的品格是很困难的。

3 consecutive   

adj.连续的，联贯的，始终一贯的

参考例句：

• It has rained for four consecutive days.已连续下了四天雨。
• The policy of our Party is consecutive.我党的政策始终如一。

4 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。