Official data reveals that in August 2026, China's producer price index (PPI) for factory gate prices climbed 3.8% from a year earlier and inched up 0.4% on a monthly basis. Meanwhile, the purchasing price index for industrial producers rose 5.8% year-on-year and 0.3% month-on-month during the same period.

Looking at the cumulative figures for the first eight months of this year, factory gate prices saw an average increase of 2.0% compared to the same period last year, while purchasing prices for industrial producers were up by an average of 3.2%.

Year-on-Year Price Movements

Breaking down the August factory gate data on an annual basis, prices for means of production grew 5.0% year-on-year, contributing approximately 3.92 percentage points to the overall PPI increase. Within this category, the extractive industry led the gains with a substantial 17.8% surge, followed by raw materials industries at 6.7% and processing industries at 3.1%.

Conversely, prices for consumer goods fell 0.5% from the previous year, dragging the overall PPI down by about 0.10 percentage points. Specifically, food prices declined 2.3%, clothing prices dropped 1.2%, and daily-use consumer goods slipped 0.8%, while durable consumer goods bucked the trend with a 1.2% rise.

On the purchasing side for industrial producers, non-ferrous metal materials and wire-related products posted a robust 19.8% annual increase, with fuel and power costs up 9.8%, chemical raw materials climbing 9.5%, textile raw materials rising 3.8%, and ferrous metal materials edging up 0.3%. However, construction materials and non-metallic mineral products saw prices contract by 3.2%, while agricultural and sideline products dropped 0.5% year-on-year.

Month-on-Month Price Fluctuations

Transitioning to the monthly comparison, prices for means of production in August gained 0.4% on a month-on-month basis, accounting for roughly 0.32 percentage points of the overall monthly PPI movement. The extractive industry recorded a 2.7% increase, raw materials industries were up 0.8%, and processing industries held steady with no price change.

Consumer goods prices ticked up 0.2% month-on-month, contributing about 0.04 percentage points to the total monthly increase. Within this segment, both food and clothing prices remained flat, daily-use consumer goods fell 0.2%, and durable consumer goods advanced 0.6%.

For industrial producer purchasing prices on a monthly basis, fuel and power costs rose 1.4%, non-ferrous metal materials and wire products increased 0.8%, and textile raw materials were up 0.6%. Conversely, ferrous metal materials declined 0.6% and chemical raw materials slipped 0.4%, while agricultural sideline products and construction materials prices remained unchanged from the previous month.