China's factory inflation eases to slowest in a year

China's producer prices rose at the slowest pace in a year in April, despite the surge in global commodity costs, leaving room for more stimulus to shore up the flagging economy, which faces pressure from heavy Covid-19 curbs.

The producer price index (PPI) rose 8.0 per cent year-on-year, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said in a statement on Wednesday, following an 8.3 per cent rise in March but faster than the 7.7 per cent growth tipped by a Reuters poll.

The consumer price index (CPI) gained 2.1 per cent from a year earlier, the fastest pace in five months, speeding up from March's 1.5 per cent growth and beating expectations for a 1.8 per cent rise.

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The slower rise in the PPI was driven by government measures to stabilise commodity prices and increase supply, the NBS said in a separate statement.

China's state planner on Tuesday called for stabilising energy prices and an acceleration in oil and gas exploration and development.

Beijing has targeted daily coal production at 12.6 million tonnes this year and prioritised energy security in the wake of geopolitical uncertainties caused by the Ukraine conflict.

China's economy slowed sharply at the beginning of the second quarter, as authorities in dozens of cities imposed restrictions to stamp out Covid-19 outbreaks, with Shanghai currently in its sixth week of lockdown.

The capital city of Beijing, which reported 24 new locally transmitted coronavirus cases for Tuesday, has banned residents from eating inside restaurants and suspended all gyms and offline tutoring classes.

The tighter curbs have taken a toll on China's economy with export growth slowing to its weakest in almost two years and factory activity contracting at a steeper pace in April.

The central bank said on Monday it would step up support for the real economy, while closely watching domestic inflation and monetary policy adjustments in developed economies.

The central bank cut the amount of cash that banks must hold as reserves in April with more modest easing steps expected.