A vegetables stall in the Haizhu area of Guangzhou, China, in May 2023.
Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Stocks in China and Hong Kong fell Wednesday as China’s consumer prices slipped into negative territory in July, for the first time in 28 months.
The CSI300, which tracks stocks of the largest listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen, fell 0.22%. Mainland Chinese markets were lower, with the Shanghai Composite down 0.36% and the Shenzhen Component 0.28% lower. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index shed 0.1%.
China’s July CPI declined by 0.3% year-on-year, smaller than the 0.4% expected by economists polled by Reuters — the last time China recorded a fall in its inflation rate was in February 2021.
Producer price index fell 4.4% in July compared to a year ago, more than the 4.1% expected by economists polled by Reuters.
“These numbers will deepen worries about both China’s growth prospects and the effectiveness of traditional stimulus measures,” Mohamed El-Erian, chief economic advisor of Allianz, said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Major markets in Asia-Pacific were mixed.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 slid 0.5%, while the Topix fell 0.3%. In contrast, South Korea’s Kospi climbed 1.09%, while the Kosdaq was up nearly 2%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was also marginally up.
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