CHINA’S consumer price index (CPI) in June rose 0.2% from a year earlier, against a 0.3% uptick in May, while producer price deflation persisted, albeit with a narrower decline than the previous month, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed yesterday. Food prices slipped 2.1% year on year, compared with a 2% decline in May. Notably, fresh vegetable prices dropped 7.3% versus a rise of 2.3% in May, perhaps due to an ample supply of more seasonal fruit, vegetables and aquatic products, according to Dong Lijuan, a statistician from the NBS. CPI edged down 0.2% month-on-month, versus a 0.1% drop in May. Boosted by the series of promotional campaigns — such as the “June 18” online shopping festival, the market prices of cars, household appliances, and recreational consumer goods dropped by 0.8-1.3%, Dong said. Notably, the travel peak during the summer holidays lifted the price for transportation by 6.4%, and air ticket prices were up by 2.5% year on year. The producer price index (PPI) fell 0.8% in June from a year earlier, less than a 1.4% decline the previous month. The fall in the PPI was the smallest in 17 months. China has rolled out a number of measures to accelerate domestic consumption, such as stimulating purchase of auto vehicles, boosting the trade-in of durable consumption items, and large-scale industrial equipment renewal. China’s Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Finance and five other government departments issued action plans for auto renewal and trade-ins of electric appliances in April to promote retail sales. An overhaul of the consumption tax as part of long-touted changes to China’s tax system might be announced at a key leadership gathering next week, to expand the consumer base, Reuters reported. Core inflation, excluding volatile food and energy prices, stood at 0.6% in June, unchanged from May. (SD-Agencies) | 