BEIJING — China's consumer prices rose by a more-than-expected 0.5% in July from a year ago, boosted by a surge in pork prices, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics released Friday.
Analysts polled by Reuters had expected a slight pickup in the consumer price index to 0.3% in July from a year ago, versus 0.2% in June.
Prices of pork, a widely consumed food staple in China, surged by 20.4% year-on-year in July.
Pork prices play a significant role in China's consumer price index, but can be prone to large swings due to disease or other factors affecting production.
Core CPI, which strips out food and energy prices, rose by 0.4% year-on-year in July.
Persons:
That's
Organizations:
National Bureau of Statistics, Reuters, CPI
Locations:
Beijing, BEIJING, China