Majority of regions in China record CPI growth

The performance of China's consumer price index (CPI), a main gauge of inflation, as of January was released recently by the National Bureau of Statistics, among provincial-level regions, 27 out of 31 registering a CPI growth year-on-year.

China's CPI was up 0.5 percent year-on-year in January and has risen for 12 consecutive months, according to the NBS.

Spurred by the Spring Festival holiday, travel and entertainment consumption rose significantly, bringing a rise in the labor prices in the services industry, said Caitong Securities.

Prices of fresh vegetables, fruits and aquatic products have increased sharply, partially due to a drop in temperature during Chinese New Year.

A total of eight provinces and cities have seen an increase in CPI, surpassing the national average level, while the rise in Shanxi, Hubei, Hunan, Guangdong provinces and Chongqing city were the same as the national level, and the increase was lower than the national level for 18 provinces and regions.

Institutions predicted that the CPI may witness a year-on-year decline in February, with a moderate recovery in the next few months.

The measures to promote consumption and expand domestic demand coupled with the low base effect may offer a boost for the rapid growth of CPI for the whole year, according to a report by China Center for Economic Research at Peking University.