China's farm produce prices retreat

BEIJING -- China's farm produce prices retreated last week from a week earlier as inflation continued to soften, official data showed Wednesday.

The wholesale prices of 18 types of vegetables fell 1.4 percent last week, returning to a downward trajectory after posting a 1.4-percent rebound the week before, according to figures from the Ministry of Commerce.

High temperatures and rainy weather had affected vegetable growth and transportation and boosted prices the week before.

Last week, the price of pork, a staple meat in China, dropped 0.7 percent from a week earlier and 23.5 percent year-on-year, the ministry said in a statement on its website.

The retail price of eggs decreased for a fourth week, down 0.3 percent from the previous week.

The retreat came after the year-on-year growth of China's consumer price index, a main gauge of inflation, eased to 2.2 percent in June, its lowest level since January 2010.

Falling farm produce prices may help further ease domestic inflationary pressure, as food prices account for a nearly one-third of the prices used to calculate the CPI.