China's consumer prices continued to rise in April.
According to the statistics office in Beijing on Saturday, the index was 0.3% higher than in April 2023, continuing the inflation trend in the world's second-largest economy. Compared to the previous month, consumer prices rose by 0.1%.
In February, the price index had shot up by 0.7% year-on-year due to the Spring Festival - an important holiday period for the domestic economy - but slowed down again significantly in March.
From autumn last year until January, China had to contend with deflation, i.e. a fall in prices - the opposite of inflation.
While this can initially have advantages for consumers, economists consider deflation to be unfavourable for the economy in the long term because companies earn less, which can lead to a fall in wages and put jobs at risk.
The development of consumer prices has so far underlined the weak consumer behaviour of private households. The country, which has a population of around 1.4 billion, also has high unemployment among young people.
A serious property crisis and the high level of debt of local governments are also slowing down the economic engine.
The government has so far struggled to boost private consumption again. Beijing has refrained from large-scale economic stimulus measures. Some experts believe that strong domestic consumption is a better way to sustainably increase economic growth.