China inflation numbers bang inline at 8.3% yoy... BUT...

So after all that, the whisper numbers were correct and, along with slightly faster than expected growth in GDP, industrial production and retail sales, March CPI figures came in bang inline. Still above the govt's comfort level of 4.8% (by miles) but comfortably off the 8.7% registered in February.

• 1Q08 Real GDP growth 10.6% vs 4Q07's 11.2% and Consensus 10.4%
• Mar 08 CPI 8.3% vs Feb 07's 8.7% and Consensus 8.2%
• Mar 08 Producer Price Index 8.0% vs Feb 08's 6.6% vs Consensus 6.8%
• Mar 08 Purchasing Price Index 11.0% vs Feb 08's 9.7%
• Mar 08 Retail Sales YoY growth 21.5% vs Feb 08's 19.1% and Consensus 19.8%
• Mar 08 Industrial Production YoY growth 17.8% vs Feb 08's 15.4% and Consensus 16.5%
• Mar 08 Fixed Assets Inv YTD YoY growth 25.9% vs Feb 08's YTD YoY growth of 24.3% and Consensus 24.0%

No panic intra-meeting rate increases, but no letting up of the PBOC's tightness rhetoric either... probably with another increase in RRR to rein in excessive money & credit growth.

More worrying, though I think the markets sold off its modest morning gains more on "sell-on-news" thinking, was the PPI figure, which climbed sharply to 8% vs Street expectations of just 6.8%... as foreshadowed in the input prices of the recent PMI survey.

The recommencement of rate hikes may come in 3Q - until then, expect selective easing and tightening measures (and extrapolating brokers) to whip the market around (again!)