BEIJING - China's consumer prices remained generally steady in August, with positive signs seen in producer prices supported by efforts to curb rat-race competition among companies.

The cconsumer price index (CPI), a main gauge of inflation, was down 0.4 percent year on year in August, while the core CPI, which excludes food and energy prices, rose 0.9 percent, quickening from July's 0.8-percent increase and marking the fourth consecutive month of increase, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed Wednesday.

NBS statistician Dong Lijuan attributed the decline in CPI to the high comparison base from the same period last year and subdued food prices last month.

Food prices fell 4.3 percent year on year in August, compared with a 1.6 percent decline in July - with pork, fresh vegetables, and eggs all posting deeper year-on-year drops.

Dong said the core CPI continued to expand as the effects of the country's supportive policies to augment domestic demand and boost consumption continued to filter through.

China has intensified moves to bolster consumption this year, including providing interest subsidies for qualifying personal consumption loans and launching new voucher programs - targeting service sectors like catering, tourism, sports events and performances.

Wu Chaoming, chief economist at the Chasing International Economic Institute, said that, supported by a low comparison base, growth in producer prices and consumption-stimulating policies, non-food prices and the core CPI are expected to continue rising - which will help keep the overall CPI stable.

From January to August 2025, the average CPI decreased by 0.1 percent compared to the same period last year.

Wednesday's data revealed improved signs in China's industrial sector. The producer price index (PPI), which measures costs for goods at the factory gate, fell 2.9 percent year on year in August. The decline narrowed by 0.7 percentage points from the previous month - marking the first such narrowing since March this year.

On a monthly basis, the PPI ended its downward trend and held steady in August.

Dong noted that the narrowing year-on-year PPI decline was driven by the implementation of more proactive macro policies and positive shifts in several industries, highlighting that sustained optimization of market competition order helped ease the year-on-year decline in this index.

Looking ahead, China's price levels still face challenges - including a complex external environment, fluctuations in international commodity prices, and strong competition in some domestic industries, NBS spokesperson Fu Linghui said.

However, with measures to boost consumption taking effect, efforts to rein in excessive competition and the growth of new economic drivers, the foundations for a reasonable rebound in prices will be further strengthened, Fu also noted.