Prices of petroleum and natural gas extraction led the headline gains, rising 12 per cent month-on-month, thanks to the continued rebound in global crude oil prices, according to Dong Lijuan, a senior statistician at NBS. Coal mining and automobile manufacturing prices also turned positive in July.
However, PPI rose 0.4 per cent on a monthly basis, unchanged from the increase in June, pointing to strains on construction and production work caused by recent floods in southern China. Some economists have warned that the recovery could stall amid cautious consumer spending and a resurgence in global infections.The consumer price index rose 2.7 per cent from a year earlier, its fastest pace in three months and compared with an expected 2.6 per cent increase and a 2.5 per cent rise in June.