China inflation falls to 7.1 per cent in June

The growth rate was 1.8 percentage points lower over the January-June period of last year, but the world's fourth largest economy still managed to post a double digit growth which it has been doing since 2003.     

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said the double-digit growth indicated that China's economy was still growing at a "steady and relatively fast pace".     

"The cooling of GDP growth indicated that the government's macro-economy policy to prevent the economy from getting overheated has paid off," NBS Chief Economist Yao Jingyuan said.     

He cited the slowing world economy and weaker demand on international markets as factors that had adversely affected the Chinese economy.     

China's economy grew by 10.6 per cent in the first quarter of this year while for the whole of 2007, it posted a scorching growth rate of 11.9 per cent.     

Inflation rate dipped to 7.1 per cent in June from 7.7 per cent in May, 8.5 per cent in April and a 12-year high of 8.7 per cent in February, official Xinhua news agency said quoting the NBS.     

For the first half of the year, the Consumer Price Index (CPI), barometer of inflation, rose 7.9 per cent over the same period last year, 0.2 percentage point lower than the first five months, the NBS said.     

Yao said the fall was due to government's efforts to curb inflation and it was expected to slow in the second half but cautioned that China should remain vigilant against high inflationary pressure due to rising prices of commodities and oil on the global market.