China CPI fall indicates stimulus measures failing to have an impact

(Sharecast News) - Chinese inflation fell to its lowest level in five months indicating that recent stimulus measures from the government had failed to stimulate demand in the world's second-biggest economy. The consumer price index rose 0.2% last month year-on-year, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) published on Monday, below the 0.3% increase in October and expectations of a 0.5% rise.

CPI fell 0.6% month-on-month, compared with a 0.3% fall in October and expectations of a 0.4% decline.

China is preparing for another blow in the form of fresh tariffs from the incoming US Donald Trump administration.

The faster monthly fall in CPI was mainly due to a weather-related 2.7% decline in food prices, the NBS said in a statement.

The national average temperature in November was the highest for any comparable period since 1961, which supported production and transportation of agricultural goods, helping bring fresh food price down, it added.

Core inflation, which excludes volatile food and fuel prices, rose slightly to 0.3% last month from 0.2% in October.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com