A consumer selects vegetables at a supermarket in Wuxi, east China's Jiangsu Province, Jan. 12, 2024.
In 2023, China's consumer price index (CPI) went up 0.2 percent, said the National Bureau of Statistics. (Photo by Huan Yueliang/Xinhua)
BEIJING, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- China's consumer price index (CPI), a main gauge of inflation, edged down 0.3 percent year on year in December 2023, official data showed Friday.
The decline narrowed from a 0.5-percent year-on-year dip registered in November last year, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
NBS statistician Dong Lijuan attributed the narrowing decline to the cold wave and stronger consumer demand ahead of the New Year holiday.
Food prices fell 3.7 percent year on year in December. The price of pork, a staple meat in China, dropped 26.1 percent from a year earlier, and dragged the CPI down by 0.43 percentage points.
Non-food prices rose 0.5 percent year on year, lifting the CPI by 0.38 percentage points.
The core CPI, deducting food and energy prices, went up 0.6 percent year on year last month, maintaining a moderate increase.
On a monthly basis, the CPI went up 0.1 percent in December from the previous month, reversing a 0.5-percent decline registered in November last year.
In 2023, the country's CPI went up 0.2 percent, said the NBS.
Friday's data also revealed that China's producer price index (PPI), which measures costs for goods at the factory gate, went down 2.7 percent year on year in December.
On a yearly basis, the PPI in 2023 dropped by 3 percent compared with 2022. ■
A woman selects goods at a supermarket in Qianxi, southwest China's Guizhou Province, Jan. 12, 2024.
In 2023, China's consumer price index (CPI) went up 0.2 percent, said the National Bureau of Statistics. (Photo by Fan Hui/Xinhua)
Consumers buy food at a supermarket in Xixiu District of Anshun City, southwest China's Guizhou Province, Jan. 12, 2024.
In 2023, China's consumer price index (CPI) went up 0.2 percent, said the National Bureau of Statistics. (Photo by Chen Xi/Xinhua)
A consumer selects goods at a supermarket in Kunming City, southwest China's Yunnan Province, Jan. 12, 2024.
In 2023, China's consumer price index (CPI) went up 0.2 percent, said the National Bureau of Statistics. (Photo by Liang Zhiqiang/Xinhua)
A consumer selects goods at a supermarket in Nanjing, east China's Jiangsu Province, Jan. 12, 2024.
In 2023, China's consumer price index (CPI) went up 0.2 percent, said the National Bureau of Statistics. (Photo by Du Yi/Xinhua)
A consumer buys meat products at a market in Taicang, east China's Jiangsu Province, Jan. 12, 2024.
In 2023, China's consumer price index (CPI) went up 0.2 percent, said the National Bureau of Statistics. (Photo by Ji Haixin/Xinhua)
Consumers select goods at a supermarket in Congjiang County, southwest China's Guizhou Province, Jan. 12, 2024.
In 2023, China's consumer price index (CPI) went up 0.2 percent, said the National Bureau of Statistics. (Photo by Luo Jinglai/Xinhua)
Consumers select dairy products at a supermarket in Xinle, north China's Hebei Province, Jan. 12, 2024.
In 2023, China's consumer price index (CPI) went up 0.2 percent, said the National Bureau of Statistics. (Photo by Jia Minjie/Xinhua)
Consumers buy meat at a supermarket in Luannan County, north China's Hebei province, Jan. 12, 2024.
In 2023, China's consumer price index (CPI) went up 0.2 percent, said the National Bureau of Statistics. (Photo by Zhang Yongxin/Xinhua)
Consumers buy seafood at a market in Lianyun District of Lianyungang, east China's Jiangsu Province, Jan. 12, 2024.
In 2023, China's consumer price index (CPI) went up 0.2 percent, said the National Bureau of Statistics. (Photo by Wang Chun/Xinhua)
