China's producer price index (PPI), which measures costs for goods at the factory gate, went up 3.5 percent year on year in July, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said Sunday.
From January to July, the PPI increased by an average of 1.8 percent year on year.
A breakdown of the data showed that stronger price gains were seen in sectors that included oil and gas extraction, non-ferrous metal mining and dressing, coal mining and washing, electrical machinery and equipment manufacturing, and computer, communication and other electronic equipment manufacturing, according to NBS statistician Dong Lijuan.
On a month-on-month basis, PPI dipped 0.7 percent last month, the NBS data showed.
Analyzing the monthly changes, Dong said imported factors weighed on prices in some industries, seasonal factors including high temperatures, heavy rainfall, and typhoons slowed construction activity and pulled down prices in certain sectors, while industrial transformation and consumption upgrading boosted demand and drove up prices in others.
New drivers of growth continued to gain momentum, with sectors such as artificial intelligence, high-end equipment and new materials flourishing. Prices in smart unmanned aerial vehicle manufacturing, new carbon materials, and shipbuilding and related equipment manufacturing rose by 2.5 percent, 0.4 percent and 0.3 percent, respectively.
Quality consumption grew at a relatively fast pace, with prices in smart household consumer devices and skincare cosmetics manufacturing increasing by 3.4 percent and 0.7 percent, respectively.
Sunday's data also showed that China's consumer price index, a key gauge of inflation, rose 0.5 percent year on year in July.
