China's CPI and PPI rise faster in September

China's consumer and producer prices both rose faster year on year in September, with factory-gate prices gaining momentum while consumer inflation remained moderate, official data showed Wednesday.

The consumer price index (CPI) rose 0.9% year on year, up from 0.8% in August, while the producer price index (PPI) increased 5%, accelerating from 3.8%, according to data released by China's National Bureau of Statistics.

Month on month, the CPI rose 0.2%, while the PPI increased 1.2%. The core CPI, which excludes food and energy prices, rose 1% year on year, unchanged from August.

Consumer inflation remains moderate

Food prices fell 1.7% year on year, weighing on the overall CPI, while non-food prices rose 1.5%. Service prices increased 0.8%, providing some support to consumer prices.

The figures suggest that broad-based consumer price pressures remain limited, despite increases in some categories, said Bruce Pang, adjunct associate professor at CUHK Business School.

Factory-gate prices gain momentum

The faster rise in PPI reflected stronger price growth for industrial materials and other upstream products. Prices of production materials rose 6.5% year on year, while consumer goods prices edged down 0.1%.

Industrial input prices increased 6.9%, outpacing factory-gate price growth and pointing to continued cost pressures for some manufacturers.

September's price data point to a continued recovery in China's economy, Pang said.

Looking ahead, stronger policy support and moderately accommodative monetary measures are expected to support a gradual recovery in prices, improve business performance and create a more favorable economic environment as China embarks on its 15th Five-Year Plan (2026–2030), he added.