FOSHAN Haitian Flavouring & Food Co., China’s largest soy sauce maker by sales, has decided to raise the retail prices of its products due to higher costs. The company plans to increase the prices of soy sauce, oyster sauce and other products by 3-7 percent from Oct. 25, as the costs of raw materials, transport and energy continue to increase, the Shanghai-listed company said in an exchange filing yesterday, adding that the hike is aimed at making its business more “sustainable.” A global commodities boom has added to inflationary pressure in the world’s second-largest economy, pushing China’s factory-gate inflation to a 13-year high and threatening to squeeze profit margins of many industrial and consumer firms. Shanghai Securities News reported Tuesday that China’s factory-gate inflation may have continued to accelerate in September, with producer prices expected to rise more than 10 percent. However, consumer inflation may have slowed because of lower pork prices, it said. Shares of Foshan Haitian, with a total market value of US$74.6 billion, have surged 32 percent since mid-September, even as the CSI 300 Index of key companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen was basically little changed. The stock, which closed down 0.39 percent yesterday, has 32 buy ratings and six holds from brokerages, with no sells. (SD-Agencies) | 