China's producer price index (PPI), which measures costs for goods at the factory gate, went up 3.8 percent year on year in August, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said Wednesday.
On a month-on-month basis, the PPI reversed a 0.7-percent decline in July to rise 0.4 percent in August, NBS data showed.
Explaining the month-on-month movement, NBS statistician Dong Lijuan said imported price pressures, particularly higher international crude oil and nonferrous metal prices, pushed up prices in some domestic industries, while industrial transformation and upgrading boosted demand and prices in some emerging sectors.
Seasonal factors also played a role, with stronger summer demand for electricity and coal lifting prices in related sectors, while high temperatures and rainfall weighed on construction activity and prices in related industries.
Wednesday's data also showed that China's consumer price index, a key gauge of inflation, rose 0.8 percent year on year in August.
China's PPI up 3.8 pct in August
China's PPI up 3.8 pct in August
China's Cross-Border Interbank Payment System (CIPS) welcomed 11 foreign banks as new direct participants at a bank-enterprise collaboration event in Xiamen of east China's Fujian Province on Tuesday, extending its reach across six new countries, including Rwanda, Türkiye and Uzbekistan.
A signing ceremony for the new participating banks took place on the sidelines of the 26th China International Fair for Investment and Trade (CIFIT), which attracted delegations from 129 countries and regions, with 60 setting up exhibition areas.
The new agreements have further extended the global reach of CIPS -- a payment system that provides clearing and settlement services for cross-border RMB payments and trade -- expanding the network of direct participants in 133 countries and regions, while its business now covers 192 countries and regions, reaching some 5,300 banking institutions.
Mziwandile Mavuso, head of intraday liquidity management at South Africa's FirstRand Bank, one of the largest financial institutions in Africa, said direct participation in the system makes RMB payments smoother and simpler for bank clients.
"Through direct participation in CIPS, banks can offer faster and more transparent RMB payment services, reduce dependencies on multiple intermediaries," said Mziwandile Mavuso, head of intraday liquidity management at FirstRand Bank Ltd.in South Africa.
The event on Tuesday also saw CIPS launch its cross-border letter of guarantee service, a standardized messaging tool covering issuance, amendment, claims and refusal notices, easing guarantee arrangements across borders for lenders and their corporate clients alike and adding to the growing range of RMB applications in international payments.
The banking breakthrough was held for the first time as part of broader CIFIT trade fair, which is organized by the Chinese Ministry of Commerce and has become an important platform for boosting investment and facilitating global development since it was first held in 1997.
China's cross-border payment system welcomes 11 foreign banks as new direct participants
