BEIJING, Dec 9, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - China's consumer inflation rate slowed in
November, official data showed on Monday, as demand remains muted in the
world's number two economy.

The country is battling sluggish domestic consumption, a persistent crisis in
the property sector and soaring government debt -- all of which threaten
Beijing's official growth target for this year.

The consumer price index (CPI), a key measure of inflation, rose 0.2 percent
in November year-on-year, down from 0.3 percent in October, the National
Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said.

That was below the 0.4 percent forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists.

Beijing has announced in recent months a slew of its most aggressive measures
in years aimed at boosting growth in China, which has struggled to fully
recover since the Covid-19 pandemic.

Many major Western economies have been grappling with the threat of high
inflation but China has instead been battling low or negative prices.

China sank into deflation for four months at the end of 2023, with the
sharpest contraction in consumer prices in 14 years in January.

Factory gate prices also slid 2.5 percent year-on-year in November, compared
to a decrease of 2.9 percent in October, the NBS said on Monday.

That extends a deflationary run that began in late 2022.

Beijing has unveiled a string of measures since September aimed at bolstering
growth, including cutting interest rates, cancelling restrictions on
homebuying and easing the debt burden on local governments.

However, economists have warned that more direct fiscal stimulus aimed at
shoring up domestic consumption is needed to restore full health in China's
economy.

"Economic activities stabilised recently but the recovery is not strong
enough to boost inflation yet," Zhiwei Zhang, chief economist at Pinpoint
Asset Management, said in a note.

"It requires a much stronger fiscal push to get China out of the deflationary
environment," he said.