China's consumer price index (CPI) rose 4.4 percent in June compared with a year ago, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. CPI in the first half of this year increased 3.2 percent year on year. Price hikes for foodstuffs, mainly grain, meat, poultry, and eggs, contributed significantly to the rise in the consumer price index (CPI) in the first half of this year.

China will impose export duties on some aluminum products from August 1 in a bid to reduce energy consumption and pollutant emissions, according to the Ministry of Finance (MOF). The government will levy a 15-percent export tariff on non-alloy aluminum rods and poles and scrap the five-percent import duty on electrolytic aluminum. This is the latest measure to rein in rapid growth in the high-energy-consuming and polluting industries, including metals. The government has already announced raises in the resources taxes on lead, zinc, copper, and tungsten ore by 3 to 16 times from August 1.

China's textile and apparel exports jumped to 73.5 billion US dollars in the first half of 2007, up 17.47 percent from the same period last year. Exports reached 16.2 billion US dollars in June, an increase of 24.49 percent, according to the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC). The NDRC has predicted the nation's exports of textiles and apparel would grow at a slower rate of 16 percent to top 165 billion US dollars this year. The projected increase is 6.6 percent points lower than the growth rate of last year, which the NDRC attributed to the surging prices of raw materials, lower export tax rebate rates, the rising yuan and trade frictions.