BEIJING, Sept. 9 (Xinhua) -- China's producer prices returned to month-on-month growth in August, as higher global commodity prices filtered through to domestic industries and industrial upgrading supported demand in some sectors, official data showed Wednesday.
The producer price index (PPI), which measures costs for goods at the factory gate, rose 0.4 percent in August, reversing a 0.7-percent decline in July. On a year-on-year basis, the index climbed 3.8 percent in August, with the pace of growth accelerating from the previous month, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
Explaining the month-on-month movement, NBS statistician Dong Lijuan said imported price pressures, particularly higher international crude oil and nonferrous metal prices, pushed up prices in some domestic industries, while industrial transformation and upgrading boosted demand and prices in some emerging sectors.
A breakdown of data showed prices in oil extraction surged 10.4 percent month on month, while those for refined petroleum products rose 4.1 percent. Together with gains in organic chemical materials and nonferrous metal smelting and processing, the four industry groups contributed about 0.31 percentage point to the monthly PPI increase.
Price gains were also seen in some technology-intensive industries, with electronic circuit manufacturing up 3.5 percent and virtual reality equipment manufacturing rising 1.9 percent, reflecting stronger demand amid the development of new growth drivers, Dong said.
Seasonal factors also played a role, with stronger summer demand for electricity and coal lifting prices in related sectors, while high temperatures and rainfall weighed on construction activity and prices in related industries, Dong added.
On a year-on-year basis, the PPI rose 3.8 percent in August, with the growth rate widening by 0.3 percentage point from July.
Among major industries, strong price gains in coal mining, nonferrous metals and several other sectors contributed about 4.24 percentage points to the overall PPI increase, while six industries with the largest downward impact shaved about 0.74 percentage point off the index.
From January to August, the PPI increased by an average of 2 percent year on year.
Wednesday's data also showed China's consumer price index, a key gauge of inflation, rose 0.4 percent month on month in August, reversing three consecutive months of decline, while the year-on-year gain climbed from 0.5 percent to 0.8 percent, reflecting sustained improvement in domestic demand.
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