BEIJING- China’s factory-gate inflation cooled in June to the lowest in 15 months as the country continues to buck the global trend of accelerating prices.
The producer price index (PPI) rose 6.1 percent year-on-year, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said on Saturday, after a 6.4 percent rise in May. Analysts had expected an increase in the PPI rate of 6.0 percent in a Reuters poll.
The slower rise in the PPI was driven by the resumption of additional industrial production, stable supply chains in key sectors and government polices to stabilize commodity prices, NBS official Dong Lijuan said in a separate statement.
Inflation in the ferrous metal mining and processing industry decreased the most, while producer prices for the oil and gas extraction industry rose the most, according to NBS.
The falling factory-gate inflation reflects easing cost pressure on the middle and downstream manufacturers, Zhou Maohua, an analyst at China Everbright Bank, said in a note.
China’s producer inflation has cooled for six consecutive months. That contrasts sharply with soaring global inflation that has prompted major central banks in the rest of the world to raise interest rates.
The consumer inflation rate in the world’s second-largest economy increased by the highest in nearly two years though it remained within the country’s target of an around 3 percent rise.
The pickup in consumer inflation follows a surge in fuel prices and suggests policymakers will need to keep a close watch on any persistent cost pressures amid the global surge in prices.
The consumer price index (CPI) increased 2.5 percent from a year earlier, widening from a 2.1 percent gain in May and the highest in 23 months. In a Reuters poll, the CPI was expected to rise 2.4 percent.
The CPI stayed flat month-on-month, after the 0.2 percent drop in May, beating the 0.1 percent decline in a Reuters poll.
Vehicle fuel prices soared 32.8 percent in June, the NBS said.
“China will continue to face the dual pressure of structural inflation and imported inflation.
The slow recovery of domestic demand will also raise up the headline consumer inflation,” said Ying Xiwen, a senior analyst at Minsheng Bank.
Overall, CPI is expected to rise moderately and very likely to surpass 3 percent in the second half of the year, but the whole year average level will still be within the annual target, Ying said.
China’s economy has showed some signs of recovery in recent months after a sharp COVID-induced slump because extensive lockdowns in cities including the commercial hub Shanghai.
