The consumer price index fell 0.3% in September from a year earlier, National Bureau of Statistics data showed on Wednesday, easing from the 0.4% drop in August.

Prices ticked up 0.1% month-on-month, a smaller than expected recovery compared to economists' forecast for 0.2% increase.

Core CPI, which strips out volatile food and energy prices, rose 1.0% from a year earlier, the highest since February 2024.

China's producer price index dropped 2.3% from a year ago, official data showed. The deflation, however, eased for a second month, with price declines narrowing from 2.9% in August and 3.6% in July.

Among the categories that saw the biggest declines were food and energy, which saw prices fall 4.4% and 2.7%, respectively.

Industrial consumer goods, most notably gold and platinum jewelry prices soared 42.1% and 33.6% on the back of a global gold rush

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