Forget stocks or gold, China's best performing asset this year is... garlic.

Garlic's price has quadrupled since March, Morgan Stanley reported, linking the price surge to its reputation as a flu-fighting food.

Chinese shoppers like Zhang Ping put their trust in the potent bulb.

[Zhang Ping, Garlic Lover]:
"I don't know about H1N1, but it can prevent ordinary colds. Take me, I've not had a cold for many years and every year I buy several dozen pounds of garlic."

Some have blamed the surge on speculators playing the garlic market, which has sent the price to about $1.50 per kilogram.

Others have noted a shortage of supply this year and an increase in production costs.

But few expected it to out-perform all other assets, which also surprised Morgan Stanley China strategist Jerry Lou.

[Jerry Lou, Morgan Stanley China Strategist]:
"When you are thinking about gold, or thinking about stocks, and properties, traditional commodities like copper, iron ore, these have all done very well, they've gained between 50 to 100 or slightly more. But garlic, national level, the wholesale price is up three times. So, this is the last thing we expected in the beginning of the year, and this is it."

Whatever the cost, the humble garlic clove seems to be a pungent asset that Chinese customers simply cannot afford to do without.