China must beware U.S. rate trend

CHINA must beware in case the Federal Reserve follows its latest quarter-point cut in the U.S. discount rate with other interest rate reductions, Commerce Minister Chen Deming said yesterday.

Policymakers are worried that a widening interest rate gap in the dollar's favor will suck speculative capital into China, adding to excess liquidity and making it harder than ever to manage monetary policy.

Feb. CGPI input price index up 9.2%

THE country's corporate goods price index (CGPI) rose 9.2 percent in February from a year earlier after an 8.4 percent increase in January, the People's Bank of China said yesterday.

The index, which measures the prices paid by businesses for inputs ranging from coal to grain, was up 1.1 percent from January, the central bank said on its Web site.