China’s attempts to cool persistent price increases appear to be taking effect as the pace of inflation slowed in August from a three-year high in July.

　　中国遏制物价持续上涨的努力似乎收到了成效。与7月份创下的3年高点相比，8月通胀增速有所放缓。

　　The country’s consumer price index, a key indicator of inflation, rose 6.2 percent in August from a year earlier, compared with a 6.5 percent rise in July, according to figures released on Friday by China’s National Bureau of Statistics.

　　中国国家统计局(NBS)周五发布的数据显示，8月份消费者价格指数(CPI)同比上涨6.2%，而7月份的涨幅为6.5%。CPI是衡量通胀水平的关键指标。

　　The Chinese government and most economists had predicted that inflation would peak by August and the slowdown is largely in line with expectations.

　　之前中国政府和大多数经济学家预计，通胀率将在8月前见顶。此次CPI增速放缓基本符合预期。

　　Consumer prices rose 0.3 percent in August from the previous month, compared with a 0.5 percent increase in July, marking the second consecutive moderation in the month-on-month reading.

　　8月CPI环比上涨0.3%，而7月环比上涨0.5%，标志着该指数连续两个月环比下降。

　　Volatile and politically sensitive food prices rose 13.4 per cent in August from a year earlier, slowing from a 14.8 per cent rise in July.

　　波动剧烈且具有政治敏感性的食品价格8月份同比上涨13.4%，较7月14.8%的涨幅有所回落。

　　Since last October, Beijing has raised interest rates five times and increased the portion of deposits that banks must hold in reserve nine times in an attempt to cool overheating growth and bring down inflation.

　　为了抑制经济增长过热并抗击通胀，中国政府自去年10月以来已5次上调基准利率，9次上调银行存款准备金率。

　　The country’s economy has started to slow in recent months and most economists predict the government will be able to engineer a “soft landing” that preserves strong growth while bringing inflation down to a more comfortable level.

　　最近几个月中国经济开始放缓。大多数经济学家预计，中国政府将能够实现“软着陆”，即在保持强劲增长的同时将通胀拉低至更适宜的水平。

　　After nearly a year of progressively tightening monetary policy the government appears to be nearing the end of this tightening cycle as long as inflation continues to moderate in the coming months, as most economists have predicted.

　　在逐步收紧货币政策近一年过后，中国政府似乎即将结束这轮收紧周期，只要通胀能像大多数经济学家所预测的那样在未来几个月继续趋于缓和。

　　With important trade partners like Europe and the US facing significant deterioration in their growth outlooks, analysts say Beijing is unlikely to carry on slowing its economy although it is not ready to begin loosening monetary policy just yet.

　　分析师表示，在欧美等重要贸易伙伴面临增长前景显著恶化的局面之际，北京方面不太可能会继续为经济减速，尽管眼下政府还没有准备开始放松货币政策。

　　After nine hikes in the required reserve ratio, large Chinese banks must currently set aside 21 percent of their deposits as reserves held by the central bank.

　　在存款准备金率上调9次后，中国的大型银行现在必须留出存款总额的21%，作为向央行缴纳的准备金。

　　“If there were another big shock out of Europe, for example, then Beijing has 21 percent of the country’s bank deposits on hand,” said Stephen Green, chief economist for Greater China at Standard Chartered. “As long as inflation is contained, they can flick a switch and inject hundreds of billions of renminbi into the economy if they need to”.

　　渣打银行(Standard Chartered)大中华区首席经济学家王志浩(Stephen Green)表示：“打个比方说，如果遭遇来自欧洲的又一次重大冲击，中央政府手中已经握有全国银行存款的21%。只要通胀得到遏制，一旦有需要，它们轻轻拨一下开关，就可以向经济注入数千亿元人民币的流动性。”

　　In August, the producer price index also moderated from the previous month, rising 7.3 percent from a year earlier, compared with July’s 7.5 percent year-on-year increase.

　　8月份生产者出厂价格指数(PPI)也较上个月出现了回落，同比上涨了7.3%，而7月份的同比涨幅为7.5%。