China's farm produce prices drop slightly

BEIJING - Prices of farm produce in China fell slightly in the week ending Feb 17, according to the Ministry of Commerce.

The price index for farm produce edged down 0.3 percent from the previous week, while the price index for production materials remained flat.

The wholesale price of eggs dropped 5.2 percent from the previous week. The price of pork went down 0.3 percent and beef 0.4 percent.

Meanwhile, the average wholesale price of 30 types of vegetables went up 0.6 percent.

Food accounts for about one-third of China's consumer price index (CPI).

The CPI, a main gauge of inflation, rose 1.7 percent year-on-year in January, compared with 1.9-percent growth in December, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed.