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TIM CHONG/Reuters

For Chinese authorities, it was a completely unthinkable theft: antique powder cases and gold purses, encrusted with jewels and worth an estimated $1.5-million, swiped from one of the most heavily guarded sites in the country.



It took Beijing police two days last week to reveal the theft, from a temporary exhibition at the Palace Museum of the iconic Forbidden City, and several more hours to track down the alleged thief -- a 27-year-old man from Shandong province who police said hid in the museum until it closed, removed nine of the curios from their display, then evaded guards' grasp and fled. Most of the items have been recovered.

But aside from the embarrassment caused to palace managers, the brazen robbery highlights a growing problem in Chinese society, the increasing gap between rich and poor. Chinese media reported that the thief confessed to stealing the boxes because he needed money.







That will catch attention in a society where inflation remained at a stubborn 5.3 per cent last month, driven largely by food prices which were up 11.5 per cent in April over the same time last year.







China's government is well aware that rising food prices helped spark the uprisings that have rocked the Arab world. Maintaining social stability is seen as a major factor in tough and often unusual measures authorities here are taking to keep everyday life affordable for average citizens, including pressure on food producers to keep prices low and restrictions on purchases of multiple homes to keep housing prices down.







Foreign firms are not exempt from this. Unilever, the maker of Dove soap, is facing a two million yuan (about $308,000) fine for suggesting in March it would increase prices, which led to a run on laundry detergent and other personal care items.







But some commentators warn inflation, and the headlines it has generated, also provides the perfect cover for government hardliners keen to show the Communist Party is still in control of the economy, along with everything else.







"They see them as good reminders that the state still rules. Many officials like to see themselves as saviours in these circumstances…I don't see much anxiety," said Russell Leigh Moses, a Beijing-based political analyst who argues the Chinese populace are a long way from taking to the streets over rising prices. "Things are done here because of a mix of commerce and control. They're never done for just one of those."





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