China's inflation moderates to 2.3%

China's consumer price index, a main gauge of inflation, grew 2.3% year on year in June, down from 2.5% in May, China's National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) announced on Wednesday.
The growth was in line with previous market forecasts that the CPI would further moderate in June from the previous month. NBS data also showed the inflation rate in the world's second-largest economy stood at 2.3% in the first half of 2014, according to (Xinhua) news agency.
"The lower inflation rate last month was mainly because of lesser impact from the carryover effects from last year, and fewer new factors for price gains compared to May," said Yu Qiumei, a senior NBS statistician.
NBS data released on Wednesday also showed China's producer price index, which measures inflation at the wholesale level, dropped 1.1% year on year in June. However, the decline narrowed by 0.3 percentage points compared to the previous month.
Analysts said price levels in China were generally in a low territory in the first half of this year amid an economic slowdown which reduced demand. They said the country is currently not faced with much pressure to control inflation, which would leave more room for the easing of monetary policies to boost growth.