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PR Newswire
14-10-2015, 02:40 PM
China inflation rate slows to 1.6pc
[Image: 860463-692986da-7221-11e5-87c5-82c509632f8f.jpg]
Shoppers in a mall in Yinchuan in north-western China's Ningxia Hui autonomous region. Source: AP
[b]China’s consumer inflation fell in September, underlining sagging sentiment as growth slows in the world’s second-largest economy.[/b]
Chinese expansion slowed to its lowest rate in nearly a quarter of a century in 2014 and has continued to weaken this year with demand remaining subdued.
The country’s consumer price index — a main gauge of inflation — rose 1.6 year-on-year in September, the National Bureau of Statistics said, down from August’s 2.0 per cent. The producer price index, which measures the cost of goods at the factory gate, fell 5.9 per cent year-on-year in September, matching August’s figure, which was a six-year low.
Moderate inflation can be a boon to consumption as it pushes buyers to act before prices go up, while falling prices encourage shoppers to delay purchases and companies to put off investment, both of which can hurt growth.
Consumer inflation has been at or below 2.0 per cent for all of 2015, while the drop in PPI — a leading indicator for CPI — was the 43rd consecutive monthly fall.
Chinese growth hit a 24-year low of 7.3 per cent in 2014 and has slowed further this year, with gross domestic product increasing 7.0 per cent in each of the first two quarters.
Both domestic and overseas demand have slackened, while the key property market has also weakened, hitting demand for construction materials.
Plants — many of them state-owned — are loath to drastically cut employees, leading to continued production even when demand is weak, putting more pressure on prices.
The International Monetary Fund last week warned that China could be headed for a hard landing unless leaders get a grip on the current economic challenges.
AFP
- AFP
- OCTOBER 14, 2015 2:06PM
[Image: 860463-692986da-7221-11e5-87c5-82c509632f8f.jpg]
Shoppers in a mall in Yinchuan in north-western China's Ningxia Hui autonomous region. Source: AP
[b]China’s consumer inflation fell in September, underlining sagging sentiment as growth slows in the world’s second-largest economy.[/b]
Chinese expansion slowed to its lowest rate in nearly a quarter of a century in 2014 and has continued to weaken this year with demand remaining subdued.
The country’s consumer price index — a main gauge of inflation — rose 1.6 year-on-year in September, the National Bureau of Statistics said, down from August’s 2.0 per cent. The producer price index, which measures the cost of goods at the factory gate, fell 5.9 per cent year-on-year in September, matching August’s figure, which was a six-year low.
Moderate inflation can be a boon to consumption as it pushes buyers to act before prices go up, while falling prices encourage shoppers to delay purchases and companies to put off investment, both of which can hurt growth.
Consumer inflation has been at or below 2.0 per cent for all of 2015, while the drop in PPI — a leading indicator for CPI — was the 43rd consecutive monthly fall.
Chinese growth hit a 24-year low of 7.3 per cent in 2014 and has slowed further this year, with gross domestic product increasing 7.0 per cent in each of the first two quarters.
Both domestic and overseas demand have slackened, while the key property market has also weakened, hitting demand for construction materials.
Plants — many of them state-owned — are loath to drastically cut employees, leading to continued production even when demand is weak, putting more pressure on prices.
The International Monetary Fund last week warned that China could be headed for a hard landing unless leaders get a grip on the current economic challenges.
AFP