With a series of measures being adopted to curb price spikes, the Chinese government is confident of keeping prices at a reasonable level, Premier Wen Jiabao said Sunday morning.

"Inflation expectations are more dire than inflation itself," Wen said, urging people to remain confident and government agencies to act to stabilize prices.

The premier made the remarks while answering a listener's question during a radio broadcast by China National Radio.

The consumer price index (CPI), a main gauge of inflation, rose to a 28-month high of 5.1 percent year on year in November, according to government statistics.

Food price rises contributed to 74 percent of the CPI growth for the month.

Wen said the country had a good agricultural supply base which gave the government confidence that it could stabilize prices.

In a bid to control inflation, the government has also increased the bank reserve requirement ratio six times and lifted interest rates twice this year, he added.

Further, authorities have introduced a package of measures including cutting fees for transportation of agriculture products and intensifying the crackdown on food price speculation.

The overall price level, especially of major consumer goods, has now begun to drop, Wen said.

"The fundamental way to stabilize prices is to achieve a balance of supply and demand, which requires continuous development of agriculture," said the premier, adding that the central government has worked out measures to boost agricultural production.

China's central bank announced Saturday to raise the one-year lending rate to 5.81 percent and one-year deposit rate to 2.75 percent, effective from Sunday.

(Xinhua News Agency December 26, 2010)