China’s consumer prices rises slow to 0.3% on year in October

BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s consumer prices rose more slowly in October, while producer price deflation deepened, even as Beijing doubled down on stimulus policies to prop up its sputtering economy.

China unveiled a 10 trillion yuan ($1.4 trillion) package on Friday to ease local government “hidden debt” burdens, rather than directly injecting money into the economy.

The consumer price index edged up 0.3% last month from a year earlier, slowing from September’s 0.4% rise and the lowest since June, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed on Saturday, missing a 0.4% increase estimate in a Reuters poll of economists.

CPI dropped 0.3% month-on-month, versus an unchanged outcome in September and below a forecast 0.1% decline.

The producer price index slid 2.9% on year in October, deeper than the 2.8% fall in September, and below the expected 2.5% decline.

($1 = 7.1785 Chinese yuan renminbi)