Prices for goods at the factory gate in China jumped in March, the government said Wednesday, in a positive sign of strengthening demand for the world's second-largest economy.

The producer price index (PPI) rose 7.6 percent year-on-year in March, according to the National Bureau of Statistics, slightly beating economists' expectations of a 7.5 percent increase in a Bloomberg News survey.

Factory gate inflation "has eased", NBS analyst Sheng Guoqing said in a statement, noting that March's figure fell back from a 7.8 percent increase in the previous month after five months of expansion.

The consumer price index (CPI) rose 0.9 percent in the month, the data showed, beating a Bloomberg analysis that forecast a 0.8 percent increase.

The figures were affected by a drop in food costs, while prices for medical care, housing, education and entertainment, and transportation and communication have increased, Sheng said.

"Reflation is close to a turning point," Larry Hu, head of China economics at Macquarie Securities Ltd., told Bloomberg.

"From a longer perspective, the key question is how long the current up-cycle could run."

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Developing Asia to fuel global growth but risks ahead: ADB
Hong Kong (AFP) April 6, 2017
Developing Asian countries will drive the world economy in the next two years, the Asian Development Bank said Thursday, but it warned of uncertainties from the United States and Europe. Its flagship Asian Development Outlook said India, Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam will be behind an expected 5.7 percent increase in Asia-Pacific gross domestic product, with China's expansion seen moderati ... read more

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