At a press conference held on May 22, Li Chao, Deputy Director of the Policy Research Office and Spokesperson for the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), commented on the outlook for price trends, stating that consumer prices are expected to continue operating within a reasonable range.
In April, China's Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 1.2% year-on-year, an increase of 0.2 percentage points from the previous month, maintaining a moderate growth rate above 1% for three consecutive months. The Producer Price Index (PPI) increased by 2.8% year-on-year, up by 2.3 percentage points from the previous month, marking two consecutive months of growth.
The price movements can be analyzed from four perspectives. First, they reflect changes in demand across related sectors. For CPI, the core CPI, which excludes food and energy, rose by 1.2% year-on-year, indicating a mild increase. Notably, in the travel services sector, driven by holiday effects from the Qingming Festival, Labor Day, and spring breaks in some regions, increased travel demand led to price rises for tourism, hotel accommodations, and vehicle rentals that exceeded seasonal levels. For PPI, accelerated green transformation and rapid development in artificial intelligence have spurred demand in related industries, with prices in non-ferrous metal smelting and processing, as well as computer and communication equipment manufacturing, increasing by 22.5% and 1.5% year-on-year, respectively.
Second, the data reflects the effectiveness of earlier comprehensive regulatory efforts. Continued measures to address "involution-style" competition have shown results, with prices in electrical machinery industries, such as photovoltaics, rising by 3.6% year-on-year. Price declines for fuel-powered and new energy passenger vehicles narrowed by 2.7 and 1.4 percentage points, respectively, compared to the full-year figures of last year. Ongoing capacity management and transformation in traditional industries contributed to a 6.6 percentage point narrowing in price declines for ferrous metal smelting and processing compared to last year's annual rate. Rules governing pricing behavior on internet platforms, which took effect on April 10, are promoting market order toward better quality, fair pricing, and healthy competition in relevant sectors.
Third, prices for essential livelihood goods have remained largely stable. Ensuring price stability for basic necessities has always been a top priority in price regulation work. Since the beginning of the year, the NDRC, in collaboration with various departments and local governments, has continued efforts to ensure supply and stabilize prices for key livelihood commodities. Overall, food prices have maintained a pattern of minor fluctuations, with the cumulative year-on-year change for the first four months of the year essentially flat.
Fourth, timely and effective responses have been implemented to address sudden developments. Earlier, sharp fluctuations in international crude oil prices over a short period transmitted downstream to industries such as chemicals, exerting imported inflationary pressure on domestic prices. In response, temporary regulatory measures were adopted to control the extent of domestic refined oil price increases, effectively mitigating the impact of external factors on the production and daily lives of domestic residents.
Li Chao stated that, overall, April's price data continued the moderate recovery trend observed since the second half of last year, sending positive signals of improving supply-demand dynamics and optimized market order.
Looking ahead, although uncertainties remain in international energy price trends, China's economy possesses strong resilience, with ample supply capacity in both goods and services markets, providing a solid foundation for maintaining overall price stability. As a series of macroeconomic policies are further implemented, supply-demand relationships in the market are expected to improve further, and prices are anticipated to continue operating within a reasonable range.
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