TCM prices rise in S. China

Zhaoqing (CNS) -- The prices of some traditional Chinese medicines spiked in Guangdong thanks to the serious drought in neighboring Yunnan.

In Zhaoqing and Yunfu in particular, prices have jumped almost 40 percent.

In the southern part of China, pharmacies usually decline to keep much TCM in storage due to extreme humidity. So when supplies from Yunnan contract prices immediately rise.

TCMs produced on the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau can barely meet local demands and have become much more expensive. Some brands more than doubled.

However, an industry insider believes continuously rising in TCM prices may be resulting from some TCM merchants purposely stockpiling supplies and inconvenient transportation conditions in rainy Guangdong, as well as the market fever stirred up by coverage of the drought in the media.