On September 11, the Sichuan Survey Office of the National Bureau of Statistics released data showing that Sichuan's Consumer Price Index (CPI) shifted from a 0.4% month-on-month increase in the previous month to a 0.1% decline in August. The year-on-year decline reached 0.9%, widening by 0.5 percentage points compared to the previous month. For the January-August period, CPI averaged 0.3% lower than the same period last year.

According to officials from the Consumer Price Survey Division of the Sichuan Survey Office, the month-on-month CPI decline was primarily driven by three factors: first, as the summer travel peak season gradually wound down, airline ticket prices fell notably, with Sichuan airfares declining 11.9% month-on-month in August; second, refined oil prices were reduced; and third, seasonal discounts on certain clothing items. The year-on-year CPI decline was mainly influenced by falling prices of pork, fresh vegetables, and gasoline.

Specifically, Sichuan pork prices dropped 0.4% month-on-month and 20.1% year-on-year in August. Officials analyzed that the concentrated slaughter of some secondary fattened pigs in August, combined with pork consumption remaining in off-season, led to renewed weakness in pork prices on a monthly basis. The significant year-on-year decline was attributed to the high base effect, as pork prices rose 19.1% year-on-year in the same month last year.

Fresh vegetable prices increased 3.4% month-on-month but fell 17.2% year-on-year in August. Officials noted that while August vegetable prices were initially affected by hot and dry weather conditions, the continuous development of domestic large-scale circulation and markets helped agricultural wholesale markets strengthen supply organization and coordinate sources from different production areas, ensuring adequate supply and restraining price increases. The early arrival of West China's autumn rains also significantly alleviated the impact of hot and dry weather. As a result, Sichuan's fresh vegetable prices rose only 3.4% month-on-month in August this year, narrowing substantially by 10.3 percentage points compared to the same month last year. Additionally, the high base effect from last year's 16.5% year-on-year vegetable price increase contributed to the large year-on-year decline this year.

For fresh fruits, August coincided with the peak season for fruit harvests across regions. The early arrival of West China's autumn rains alleviated the impact of hot and dry weather on fruit growth, ensuring abundant fresh fruit supply within the province. Fresh fruit prices declined 3.7% month-on-month and 4.6% year-on-year in August.

Despite the year-on-year CPI decline, core CPI excluding food and energy prices maintained a steady trend, staying at a 0.5% year-on-year increase for four consecutive months from May to August.

Furthermore, the effects of various policies to expand domestic demand and promote consumption, including trade-in programs for consumer goods, continued to manifest, with prices showing structural improvement trends. In August, Sichuan household appliance prices rose 3.1% year-on-year, cultural and recreational durable goods prices increased 2.4% year-on-year, and while fuel-powered and new energy vehicle prices continued to decline, their year-on-year indices recovered 1.3 and 4.3 percentage points respectively from their annual lows.

Regarding the Producer Price Index (PPI), August continued the declining trend seen throughout this year, falling 3.1% year-on-year. While this followed the previous month's two-year low, it showed some recovery with the decline narrowing by 0.4 percentage points from the previous month. Month-on-month, PPI fell 0.1%, with the decline narrowing by 1.1 percentage points from the previous month.

Officials from the Production Price Survey Division of the Sichuan Survey Office indicated that in August, prices in sectors including automobile manufacturing, electrical machinery and equipment manufacturing, and non-metallic mineral products manufacturing continued their declining trends. However, as domestic market competition continues to optimize, year-on-year price declines in some industries have narrowed.