BEIJING—China’s factory-gate prices rose at an unexpectedly fast clip in July, matching the highest level in more than 12 years as crude oil and coal prices soared—though economists say the price pickup is unlikely to last.
China’s producer-price index rose 9.0% from a year earlier, the National Bureau of Statistics said Monday—faster than June’s 8.8% year-over-year increase and the 8.8% gain forecast by economists polled by The Wall Street Journal.
July’s increase matched May’s 9.0% year-over-year jump, which marked the biggest surge in producer prices since September 2008.
On a month-over-month basis, China’s producer prices rose 0.5% in July, faster than June’s 0.3% advance.
The price increases came despite measures taken by Beijing in recent months to cool soaring commodity prices, including restricting steel exports and cracking down on speculative behavior.
