China’s consumer price index climbs 0.6% in August, missing expectations

BEIJING — China on Monday reported the consumer price index rose 0.6% year on year.

The consumer price index was forecast to have climbed 0.7% year on year in August, according to a Reuters poll.

Consumer prices in China have remained subdued amid lackluster domestic demand since the pandemic.

China’s former central bank head Yi Gang said at a conference on Friday that the country needed to focus on “fighting the deflationary pressure.” He forecast the consumer price index would be slightly above zero by the end of the year.

Retail sales rose by just 2.7% in July from a year ago. Retail sales and industrial data for August are due out Saturday.

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