Chinese Rate Hike RumblingsWith just 48 hours left until the...

Chinese Rate Hike Rumblings

With just 48 hours left until the rumored rate hike by the PBoC either this Friday or over the weekend, the verbal war in China is second only to the hacker war currently gripping the internet. First, the China Securities Journal, the same publication that warned that a rate hike was imminent earlier in the week, quoted Ba Shuson, a researcher with the State Council's Development Research center, who said that China's inflation in November may have peaked at a stunning 4.8%. He also added that "it will take time for the governments measures to fight price gains to take effect." Of course the government would actually have to institute measures to fight price gains: if the just released Australia payrolls number is accurate, Chinese inventory stockpiling hit an all time high this month, and in exchange the country will likely see a huge influx of capital, making its inflationary problems even worse, although we won't know for sure until the trade surplus data is released later this week