<p>China's factory-gate prices rose at the highest rate in at least 25 years in September, official data showed Thursday, hit by the rising cost of coal.</p>.<p>The producer price index (PPI), which measures the cost of goods at the factory gate, rose 10.7 per cent on-year, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.</p>.<p>It was the highest level on record in NBS data, which goes back to October 1996.</p>.<p>The figures come after factory-gate inflation jumped to a 13-year high in August, reflecting a surge in commodity prices -- piling pressure on businesses already struggling with power rationing last month that affected output.</p>.<p>"In September, affected by factors such as rising prices of coal and some energy-intensive industry products, the price increase of industrial products continued to expand," said NBS senior statistician Dong Lijuan in a statement.</p>.<p>Dong added that among 40 industrial sectors surveyed, 36 saw price hikes -- including coal mining, which saw a bump of 74.9 per cent.</p>.<p>Meanwhile, the consumer price index (CPI), a key gauge of retail inflation, came in at 0.7 per cent on-year, slightly down from the 0.8 per cent reading for August.</p>.<p>The NBS said that pork prices -- which fuelled a spike in CPI previously -- fell by 46.9 per cent on an annual basis.</p>
<p>China's factory-gate prices rose at the highest rate in at least 25 years in September, official data showed Thursday, hit by the rising cost of coal.</p>.<p>The producer price index (PPI), which measures the cost of goods at the factory gate, rose 10.7 per cent on-year, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.</p>.<p>It was the highest level on record in NBS data, which goes back to October 1996.</p>.<p>The figures come after factory-gate inflation jumped to a 13-year high in August, reflecting a surge in commodity prices -- piling pressure on businesses already struggling with power rationing last month that affected output.</p>.<p>"In September, affected by factors such as rising prices of coal and some energy-intensive industry products, the price increase of industrial products continued to expand," said NBS senior statistician Dong Lijuan in a statement.</p>.<p>Dong added that among 40 industrial sectors surveyed, 36 saw price hikes -- including coal mining, which saw a bump of 74.9 per cent.</p>.<p>Meanwhile, the consumer price index (CPI), a key gauge of retail inflation, came in at 0.7 per cent on-year, slightly down from the 0.8 per cent reading for August.</p>.<p>The NBS said that pork prices -- which fuelled a spike in CPI previously -- fell by 46.9 per cent on an annual basis.</p>