Factory Inflation Hits Six-Month High

China’s factory inflation hit a six-month high in June mainly due to a lower comparison base last year and rising oil costs, while consumer prices remained stable, official figures showed Tuesday.

The producer price index (PPI), which tracks changes in the prices of goods circulated among manufacturers and mining companies, increased 4.7% year-on-year in June, the fastest rate this year, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed. It also beat a median forecast of 4.5% growth in a Bloomberg News poll of economists.