Rise in CPI won't derail development

National Bureau of Statistics data for the first half of the year show China's GDP grew 6.3 percent in line with expectations, and the consumer price index (CPI) increased 2.2 percent year-on-year, lower than the CPI target set in the Government Work Report, while per capita dispensable income grew 6.5 percent after adjusting for inflation - 0.2 percentage points higher than the GDP growth.

The increase in the CPI in the first half was 0.4 percentage points higher than in the first quarter thanks mainly to prices of vegetables increasing 9.2 percent, pork 7.7 percent and fruits 16.1 percent.

Since people are most sensitive to fluctuations in food prices, they feel the pressure of inflation, not least because despite the decline in vegetable prices in June, the prices of pork and fruits continued to rise rapidly - with fruit prices increasing 42.7 percent in June.