China’s consumer inflation rose for the fourth straight month in May, official data showed on Wednesday.

The consumer price index (CPI) increased 0.3% in May from a year earlier, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed.

Prices dipped 0.1% on a monthly basis.

Core inflation, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, rose 0.6% in May.

China saw 110 million domestic tourist trips during the three-day Dragon Boat Festival holiday ending on Monday, up 6.3% from the same holiday last year.

Holiday consumption rose 8.1% year on year to 40.35 billion yuan, data from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism showed.

The European Union on Wednesday announced it would impose extra duties of up to 38% on imported Chinese electric vehicles.

In a statement, the European Commission said the measures would counter unfair subsidies, “which is causing a threat of economic injury” to EU EV producers.

The EU said the additional tariffs ranging from 17.4% on BYD to 38.1% on SAIC would be introduced on July 4 if talks with Chinese authorities lead to no effective solution.

China’s investment in railway reached 228.47 billion yuan in the first five months of 2024, up 10.8% from the same period last year, official data showed.

The country has been expanding its vast high-speed railway network, laying railway tracks in remote mountainous areas of the country. 

U.S. inflation eased in May as consumer prices fell to an annualized rate of 3.3% from an 3.4% increase in April, official data showed on Wednesday.

Consumer price index was unchanged in May on a monthly basis, data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics showed.

Core inflation which excludes volatile food and energy prices rose 3.4% in May.

The European Central Bank (ECB) cut interest rates for the first time since 2019.

The ECB lowered three key interest rates by 0.25%. The deposit interest rate stays at 3.75% after the cut.

It said the decision was made based on falling inflation and “strength of monetary policy transmission”. 

The World Bank said on Tuesday that the global economy is stabilizing for the first time in three years in 2024.

In its latest Global Economic Prospects, the World Bank projects the global economy to expand 2.6% in 2024 before edging up to an average of 2.7% in 2025-26.

Global inflation is to moderate to 3.5% in 2024 and 2.9% in 2025.

Germany’s consumer inflation rose 2.8% in May from a year earlier, official data showed on Wednesday.

The consumer price index in May edged up 0.2% on a monthly basis.

Energy prices fell 1.1% in May while food prices went up 0.6%.

Core inflation, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, increased 3% last month.

Japan’s  economy shrank less than initially estimated in the first quarter, official data showed.

The country’s GDP was revised upward to an annualized fall of 1.8% in the first quarter, up from the preliminary estimate of a fall of 2%.

On a quarterly basis, Japan’s economy dipped 0.5% in the January-March period.

The revision was due to private sector investments which dipped 0.4%, up from the previous drop of 0.5%.