BEIJING: China’s consumer prices and factory prices declined in November due to a decline in commodity prices. Despite the foreign media hyping up deflation risks, China is introducing more policies to support a real estate sector undergoing adjustments and promote further economic recovery next year, experts said.
China’s consumer price index (CPI), the main gauge of inflation, fell 0.5 percent in November from a year earlier and slipped 0.5 percent from October, which is mainly due to a decrease in energy prices, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed on Saturday.
The decrease in CPI in November was mainly attributed to factors including downward fluctuations in food and energy prices. Core CPI remained stable during the month, according to the NBS statistician Dong Lijuan.
Core CPI, which excludes food and energy prices, increased by 0.6 percent year-on-year, maintaining a moderate increase, the same as the previous month, Dong said.
The producer price index (PPI) fell 3 percent year-on-year in November, affected by the decline in international oil prices and weak demand across some industrial product markets, according to NBS.
The factors contributing to the widening decline in November’s prices can be attributed to the persistent risk of external deflationary pressure, Tian Yun, a veteran economist based in Beijing, told the Global Times on Saturday.
The reduction on the US Federal Reserve’s balance sheet has led to a decline in commodity prices, especially oil and agricultural prices, which can be seen from the import data in November, Tian said.
In the first 11 months of the year, average import prices of several major commodities, excluding iron ore, have declined, according to Chinese customs data.
The stimulative impact for expanding domestic demand from the real estate sector on the economy is not as robust as it was in the past, primarily due to ongoing structural adjustments in the real estate sector, experts noted.
In November, China’s manufacturing industry recorded a Purchasing Manager Index (PMI) of 49.4 percent, indicating the challenges faced in achieving further economic recovery.
China is increasing support for the real estate sector to stabilize future development expectations. As next year’s economic policies return to an expansionary range, the effects should gradually become evident, Tian said.
