Consumer prices in China were up 0.3 percent on year in May, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Wednesday.
That was shy of expectations for 0.4 percent and unchanged from the previous month.
On a monthly basis, inflation fell 0.1 percent versus forecasts for a flat reading after rising 0.1 percent in April.
The bureau also said that producer prices slumped an annual 1.4 percent - exceeding forecasts for -1.5 percent following the 2.5 percent decline a month earlier.