Author: Sun Tianfu

In December 2009 Chen Guowei, Supervisor on the Enterprise Supervision Board of the State Asset Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC), spawned a major debate  about reformation of the salt monopoly in China. He stated at a Salt Reform meeting that reform of China’s salt monopoly system needs to be sped up in order to break the state’s monopoly, even though the China Salt Industry Corporation is strongly opposed to this market reform. Chen then went on to directly attack China Salt’s monopoly over the production and circulation of salt.

Chen had proposed reformation of the salt monopoly as early as 2004. In 2005, he presided over a reform of the industry in Guangdong, which was eventually frustrated due to the proliferation of private salt. Read more…