BEIJING — China on March 13 released 17,000 metric tons of pork from its central reserves in a bid to increase supply and stabilize market expectations, according to the Ministry of Commerce (MOC).

The country has made several rounds of release of the staple meat since January, with 20,000 tons made available on March 5. The MOC said more frozen pork reserves would be put onto the market in the future in due course.

From March 2 to March 6, the average pork price index in 16 provincial-level regions tracked by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs came in at 48.53 yuan (about $7) per kg, down 0.4 percent week-on-week.

The price retreat came as the Chinese government has been taking multi-pronged measures to boost supply, including increasing subsidies to restore hog production, releasing frozen pork reserves and expanding pork imports.