AUTO FANFARE: People snap pictures of cars displayed at the 2013 Xi'an International Automobile Industry Exposition in Xi'an, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi Province, on June 12 (DING HAITAO)

Inflation Down

China's consumer inflation growth for May fell below market expectations, driven down by slumping vegetable prices.

The consumer price index, a main gauge of inflation, grew 2.1 percent year on year in May, down from 2.4 percent in April, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said.

The rise was below market forecasts of around 2.5 percent, according to Wang Jun, an analyst at the China Center for International Economic Exchanges, a government think tank.

The NBS mainly attributed the slowdown to falling vegetable prices, which shrank 13.8 percent in May from April.

Production activity remains sluggish.

The producer price index, which measures wholesale inflation, fell 2.9 percent year on year in May, marking the steepest drop since September last year and pointing to continued weak market demand.

Tapping African Market

Chinese solar panel makers may bulk up in Africa after China finishes building one of the biggest solar power stations on the continent.

Chinese solar panel makers will supply most of the $140 million needed to build a solar power station in Garissa, Kenya, according to state-owned China Jiangxi Corporation for International Economic and Technical Cooperation, the deal's coordinator.

The coordinating company said that the project will serve as the base for China's biggest solar panel makers to expand their presence in Africa.

The solar power station can generate 76 million kilowatt hours of electricity annually and provide power for about 350,000 people, or half of Garissa's population.

Chinese solar companies, mired in debt and overcapacity, are in great need to find alternative markets, as their biggest importer will probably buy less due to the duties.

Potential Inclusion

Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) has started to review China A-shares for a potential inclusion in its emerging markets index.

The possible inclusion was "driven primarily by a series of positive market opening measures and strong regulatory momentum," MSCI said in its 2013 annual market classification review.

"Such an inclusion is expected to increase investors' attention on China's stock markets," Lian Ping, chief economist at Bank of Communications, told Xinhua News Agency.

Over the past year, Chinese regulators have made strides in opening the mainland market. They increased the total quota limit for the qualified foreign institutional investor (QFII) program, relaxed QFII entry requirements and sped up the application and license-granting process. Regulators also removed several restrictions for the renminbi qualified foreign institutional investor program.

MSCI benchmarks are closely followed by most of the world's large investors.