According to the report from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), China’s factory gate inflation in July rose at a faster clip from the previous month and exceeded market expectations, adding to strains on an economy losing recovery momentum as businesses struggle with high raw material costs.

The producer price index (PPI) grew 9.0% from a year earlier, matching the high seen in May, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said in a statement on Monday. Analysts had expected the PPI to rise 8.8%, unchanged from June.

The PPI, a benchmark gauge of a country’s industrial profitability, inched up 0.5% on a monthly basis, accelerating from a 0.3% uptick in June.

China’s economy has largely recovered from disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the expansion is losing steam as businesses face intensifying strains from higher commodity prices and global supply chain bottlenecks.

A separate NBS statement showed that the consumer price index (CPI) in July rose 1.0% from a year earlier, compared with a 1.1% gain in June and below the government target of around 3% this year. Economists had expected a 0.8% increase. On a month-on-month basis, the CPI rose 0.3%, compared with a 0.2% increase tipped by the poll and June’s 0.4% decline.

The core consumer price index, which strips out volatile food and energy prices, stood at 1.3% on year, versus a 0.9% rise in June.