BEIJING—China’s consumer-inflation rate held steady in April, giving the central bank more leeway to ease monetary policy as the world’s second-largest economy battles weak demand.

The National Bureau of Statistics reported Tuesday that China’s consumer-price index rose 2.3% from a year earlier in April, unchanged for the third consecutive month with higher vegetable and pork prices offset by lower fruit and egg prices. The CPI figure undershot a median 2.4% gain forecast by 15 economists in a survey by The Wall Street Journal.

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