China's consumer inflation rises slightly to 2.5 pct in June

Consumers select vegetables at a supermarket in Handan City, north China's Hebei Province, June 10, 2020. (Photo by Hu Gaolei/Xinhua)

BEIJING, July 9 (Xinhua) -- China's consumer inflation remained generally stable in June under the country's continued efforts toward economic recovery, official data showed Thursday.

Consumer price index (CPI), the main gauge of inflation, grew 2.5 percent year on year last month, expanding from the 2.4-percent gain in May, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics.

On a monthly basis, consumer prices went down 0.1 percent. Food prices, which account for nearly one-third of weighting in China's CPI, went up 0.2 percent last month.

In breakdown, pork prices rebounded to climb 3.6 percent from May as supply contracted over factors including declining hog production and pork import, as well as increasing demand from catering industry. Prices of vegetables rose 2.8 percent from May over flood in many regions across China and temporary closure of the Xinfadi farm produce wholesale market in Beijing for COVID-19 control.

Compared with the same period last year, food prices remained the main driver of consumer inflation in June, while its growth rate strengthened from May to 11.1 percent.

In the first half of this year, CPI went up 3.8 percent year on year on average.

Thursday's data also showed China's producer price index, which measures costs for goods at the factory gate, fell 3 percent year on year last month.