China's CPI up, PPI decline narrows in November

China's consumer price index (CPI) was up 0.2 percent year on year in November, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said on Monday.

The main gauge of inflation was down from the 0.3-percent increase registered in October, largely due to slower food price rises, said NBS chief statistician Dong Lijuan.

Wen Bin, chief economist at China Minsheng Bank, attributed the drop in food prices to unseasonably warm November weather, boosting agricultural production and logistics, and lowering prices for fresh produce, pork, fruit, and seafood. Non-food prices fell as colder weather reduced tourism and travel, causing a dip in service prices.

China's producer price index (PPI) went down 2.5 percent year on year in November, narrowing from the 2.9-percent decline in October. On a month-on-month basis, the PPI turned to an increase of 0.1 percent last month from a decrease of 0.1 percent in October.

Dong attributed the improvement in PPI to the recovering domestic demand, driven by the implementation of existing policies and incremental policies aimed at shoring up the economy.

Bruce Pang, chief economist at JLL Greater China, told CGTN that coordinated policy efforts have boosted corporate and household confidence, stabilizing and accelerating domestic demand growth driven by consumption and investment, and sustaining economic recovery.

(With input from Xinhua)