BEIJING — China’s consumer prices rose by a more-than-expected 0.5% in July from a year ago, boosted by a surge in pork prices, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics released Friday.
Analysts polled by Reuters had expected a slight pickup in the consumer price index to 0.3% in July from a year ago, versus 0.2% in June.
The 0.5% CPI increase in July was the highest since a 0.7% rise in February, according to official data accessed via Wind Information. China’s biggest holiday of the year, the Lunar New Year, fell in February this year.
Prices of pork, a widely consumed food staple in China, surged by 20.4% year-on-year in July. That was the biggest increase since December 2022, according to Wind.
Pork prices play a significant role in China’s consumer price index, but can be prone to large swings due to disease or other factors affecting production.
Core CPI, which strips out food and energy prices, rose by 0.4% year-on-year in July. That’s down from 0.6% in June.
The producer price index for July fell by 0.8% from a year ago. That was slightly less than the 0.9% forecast decline, and unchanged from June’s 0.8% drop.
China on Wednesday reported imports rose by a stronger-than-expected 7.2% in July from a year ago, while exports missed forecasts with 7% growth.
Exports have otherwise been a bright spot amid slower economic growth.
Retail sales grew by a muted 2% in June from a year ago. Authorities have since expanded a trade-in program in an effort to boost consumer purchases of cars, home appliances and certain other products.
China is due to report retail sales, industrial production and other data for July on Thursday.
This is breaking news. Please check back for updates.
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