Farm produce prices in China's 36 large- and medium-sized cities have risen for three consecutive weeks, the Ministry of Commerce said Tuesday.

In the week ended May 2, farm produce prices increased 0.3 percent in those cities from a week earlier, the ministry's latest statistics showed.

Food prices account for 34 percent of the weighting in China's consumer price index (CPI), a major gauge of inflation.

The calculation of CPI in China also covers other items related to household expenditure, such as entertainment and home appliances.

The prices of producer goods, however, dropped for two straight weeks, down 0.9 percent from a week ago, according to the ministry.

China is yet to report its CPI figure for April. Its CPI rose 2.2 percent in the first quarter of 2010 from the same period last year.

The producer price index (PPI), a major measure of inflation at the wholesale level, rose 5.9 percent in March from a year earlier. China's PPI rose 5.2 percent year on year in the first quarter.

(Xinhua News Agency May 5, 2010)