Chinese urban residents are more satisfied with the present prices of goods and their expectation for future prices is optimistic, a latest survey by the People's Bank of China (PBC) showed on Wednesday.

 

The survey of urban residents with deposits in the first quarter showed that the people's satisfactory index was minus 9.1 percent, up 3.3 percent over the previous quarter.

 

Among the people surveyed, 22.1 percent held that "prices are too high to be accepted", down 2.4 percent from the previous quarter and 13 percent thought prices were "satisfactory", up 0.9 percent compared with that of the previous quarter.

 

The survey also showed that people were optimistic about future prices. Up to 28.8 percent of the interviewees predicted that prices would rise, down 12.9 percent from the previous quarter and down 0.4 percent from the previous year.

 

Ten percent thought the prices would drop, up 5.7 percent on the previous quarter and up 0.3 percent on last year.

 

The satisfactory index for the current income increased 7.8 percent to 22.1 percent and the confidence index for future income reduced by 2.5 percent to 19 percent, up 1.8 percent on the previous year, according to the survey.

 

(Xinhua News Agency March 16, 2006)