China consumer inflation stable at 2.3pc in March

CHINA'S consumer inflation was steady at 2.3 percent year-on-year in March, official data showed Monday, a sign of stabilisation for the world's second-largest economy.

The rise in the consumer price index (CPI) released by the National Bureau of Statistics was the same as February's 2.3 percent, and slightly below market forecasts of 2.4 percent in a survey by Bloomberg News.

Moderate inflation can be a boon to consumption as it pushes buyers to act before prices go up, while falling prices encourage shoppers to delay purchases and companies to put off investment, both of which can hurt growth.

The producer price index (PPI), which measures prices of goods at the factory gate, fell 4.3 percent year-on-year, its slowest rate of decline since January 2015.It increased 0.5 percent from February, its first month-on-month rise in two and a half years.

"Deflation is our top macroeconomic concern and today's PPI offers signs of relief," said analysts with ANZ Research in a note.