Economic Watch: China's latest CPI, PPI data point to steady economic momentum

BEIJING, Nov. 9 (Xinhua) -- China reported stable consumer price growth and a further narrowed decline in producer prices in October, as warming consumer sentiment and increasing domestic demand continued to drive economic growth, official data revealed on Sunday.

The consumer price index (CPI), a main gauge of inflation, was up 0.2 percent year on year in October 2025, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed.

On a monthly basis, the CPI also rose 0.2 percent last month, with the increase widening by 0.1 percentage points from the previous month, according to this data.

The core CPI, which excludes food and energy prices, increased by 1.2 percent year on year -- marking the sixth consecutive month of acceleration in growth pace.

The core CPI in October had reached the highest level since March 2024, the NBS data also revealed.

NBS statistician Dong Lijuan attributed the consumer price increase last month to the continued effects of policies to expand domestic demand, coupled with the boosting impact of the National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival holiday period.

This year, the National Day holiday coincided with the Mid-Autumn Festival, extending the public holiday period from Oct. 1 through Oct. 8. Driven by surging holiday travel demand -- prices of hotel accommodation and airfare rose by 8.6 percent and 4.5 percent month on month, respectively.

During the holiday period, higher consumer demand also led to increases in the prices of fresh vegetables, fruits, lamb, beef and other goods.

Looking at the future, Wen Bin, chief economist at China Minsheng Bank, anticipated that China's CPI will maintain its upward trend.

A series of policies aimed at expanding domestic demand and promoting consumption will continue to take effect -- which is expected to further beef up the vitality of China's consumer market, Wen said.

Sunday's data further showed that China had witnessed signs of improvement in factory-gate prices in October, with the decline in its producer price index (PPI) continuing to narrow.

The PPI, which measures costs for goods at the factory gate, went down 2.1 percent year on year in October, the NBS said, noting that the decline narrowed by 0.2 percentage points from the previous month -- marking the third consecutive month of narrowing.

Wen anticipated that the drop in China's PPI would continue to narrow.

The advanced, intelligent and green transformation of China's manufacturing industry, meanwhile, is showing positive trends, which will further boost market demand and drive price increases in related sectors in the future, Wen noted. ■