China’s CPI Drop Slows in March, PPI Decline Deepens

Post by: Layla Badr

Photo: WAM

In March, the prices of things people buy in China continued to fall, but not as much as before, according to official numbers shared on Thursday.

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) — which shows how prices for everyday items like food, clothes, and services change — went down by 0.1% compared to last year. This drop is smaller than the 0.7% fall in February, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said.

A big reason for the fall in CPI was the drop in food prices. In March, food prices were 1.4% lower than last year, but in February, they had fallen even more — by 3.3%.

Stay informed with the latest news. Follow DXB News Network on WhatsApp Channel  

When comparing month to month, prices in March were 0.4% lower than in February, which had already seen a 0.2% drop.

However, there’s some good news too. The core CPI, which does not include food and energy prices (because they change a lot), rose by 0.5% in March compared to last year. In February, it had gone down by 0.1%. This is a sign that things may be improving slowly.

Dong Lijuan, a statistics expert at the NBS, said the drop in prices from February to March was mainly due to:

• Plenty of food is available, thanks to warmer weather.
• Cheaper travel services, as fewer people travel after the Spring Festival holiday.
• Falling oil prices across the world.

Dong also said that the smaller drop in year-on-year CPI and the increase in core CPI are positive signs. It means that government steps to boost shopping and spending are starting to work, and the effects of the Spring Festival timing are fading away.

On the other hand, China’s factory prices dropped more sharply. The Producer Price Index (PPI), which tracks the prices factories charge when they sell their goods, fell by 2.5% in March compared to last year. This is a bigger fall than February’s 2.2% drop.

Looking at it month by month, the PPI was down by 0.4% in March, after a 0.1% drop in February.

Dong explained that this fall in factory prices was caused by:

• Lower prices for oil products made in China.
• Weak demand for energy items like coal due to the season.
• Falling prices of some raw materials.
• Price drops in industries that depend on exports.

In summary, while prices are still going down, especially in factories, there are some small signs that the economy may be starting to recover, especially in areas not affected by food or energy changes.

#trending #latest #chinaeconomy #inflationupdate #consumerprices #factoryprices #chinacpi #chinappi #economicnews #globalmarkets #priceindex #marchupdate #coreinflation #foodprices #headlines #topstories #globalUpdate #dxbnewsnetwork #dxbnews #dxbdnn #dxbnewsnetworkdnn #bestnewschanneldubai #bestnewschannelUAE #bestnewschannelabudhabi #bestnewschannelajman #bestnewschannelofdubai #popularnewschanneldubai