Inflation in July steady amid virus, dire floods
Print Edition
China managed to keep prices of staple goods and production materials stable in July despite a resurgence of COVID-19 cases and severe floods that disrupted economic activities, official data showed yesterday.
The consumer price index, a main gauge of inflation, rose 1 percent year on year last month, lower than the 1.1 percent growth recorded in June, National Bureau of Statistics data showed.
The producer price index, which measures costs for goods at the factory gate, expanded 9 percent year on year in July, slightly higher than June’s 8.8 percent rise.
“Market demand and supply remained basically steady last month amid government measures to coordinate COVID-19 control, disaster relief and economic growth,” said senior NBS statistician Dong Lijuan.
Extreme weather and a COVID-19 resurgence since July have posed challenges to agricultural production and economic operation in some regions. In the central Henan Province, unprecedented floods ravaged farmland and disrupted normal lives, while a fresh spike in COVID-19 cases caused mainly by the Delta variant added to the pain.
The country’s top economic planner has called on all localities to strengthen market price monitoring and early warning, and release reserves when appropriate to ensure the supply of the staple goods and avoid sharp increase in prices.
In July, food prices fell 3.7 percent year on year while non-food prices increased 2.1 percent, NBS data showed.
On a monthly basis, CPI rose 0.3 percent, reversing a decline seen in June. Affected by typhoons and heavy rains in some regions, costs for the production, storage and transportation of vegetables rose, contributing to the price hike, Dong noted.
On the industrial side, sharp price gains in crude oil and coal lifted year-on-year PPI growth in July, but month-on-month data showed that government policies to stabilize commodity prices have taken effect, with mild price declines seen in industries, including steel and non-ferrous metals, Dong noted.
Prices of agricultural production materials rose rapidly in July compared with June, with a relatively fast increase in prices of fertilizers and pesticides.
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