China's State Council issued a notice Friday aimed at addressing concerns over higher prices. The notice calls on central and local governments to step up measures to regulate and stabilize prices.

The measures include increasing agricultural productivity, lowering the transport cost of agricultural products, reforming the price mechanism, and ensuring food supplies. The State Council says governments should intervene to control the prices of necessities and basic elements of production if necessary.

In some cases, local governments will provide subsidies to needy families to compensate for higher living costs. These steps are introduced after China's consumer price index rose to a 25-month high of 4.4 percent in October. Experts believe a surge in food prices was the main reason.

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