Chinese data suggest further slowing for economy...oh no, weren't they supposed to save the globe?

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Chinese consumer and wholesale prices rose less than expected, while industrial output and retail sales eased, pointing to a slowing in the economy.

The consumer price index for July was 3.3% higher than a year earlier, while the producer price index was up 4.8%, the National Bureau of Statistics said Wednesday.

The CPI was expected to rise 3.4% and PPI tipped to gain 5.4%, according to a Dow Jones Newswires survey.

The CPI result marked an acceleration from June's 2.9% rise, but the PPI inflation eased from the prior month's 6.4%. The CPI increase was due in large part to a 6.8% gain in food prices.

Industrial output for the month was up 13.4% year-on-year, below June's 13.7% increase but above expectations for a 13.2% rise, according to separate surveys by Dow Jones Newswires and Reuters.

Retail sales rose 17.9% year-on-year, slowing from June's 18.3% rise and well below Reuters' surveyed forecast of 18.4%.