Seasonal factors drive food prices higher
China's consumer price index (CPI), a main gauge of inflation, reached a 19-month high with a rise of 2.3 percent year-on-year in February, up from January's 1.8 percent increase, according to figures released on Thursday by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
The change was a bit large, but it won't affect the government's monetary policy trend, experts noted on Thursday.
Yu Qiumei, a senior statistician at the NBS, said on Thursday that seasonal distortions caused food prices to spike, which was the main reason behind the rising CPI.
Higher transportation costs and rises in "certain services industries" during the recent Spring Festival holidays also pushed up the CPI level, Yu noted.
The February inflation rate in China was well above the average market forecast of 1.9 percent, according to a Reuters report on Thursday.
Liu Dongliang, a senior analyst at China Merchants Bank, told the Global Times on Thursday the rising inflation level in February was also caused by monetary easing policies adopted by the Chinese government in recent months.
According to statistics released by People's Bank of China, the central bank, the country's broad money supply covering cash in circulation and deposits - also known as M2 - stood at 142 trillion yuan ($21.8 trillion) as of the end of January, up 14 percent year-on-year.
There have been concerns as to whether the rising CPI will mean inflation risks and cause changes in China's monetary policies.
Liu said that so far, there's no need to worry about such things. "Before the domestic economy shows any substantial improvement, weak domestic demand will continue to deter inflation risks," he noted.
Xu Hongcai, director of the Economic Research Department at the China Center for International Economic Exchanges, told the Global Times on Thursday that the CPI level in February was a bit high, but it reflects short-term fluctuations and is unlikely to sway the central bank's monetary policy.
Liu also said that the government will continue to ease its monetary policy given the current economic situation, adding that the rise in food prices is likely to be temporary and consumer inflation will further surge and then fall back.
The producer price index, a gauge of inflation at the wholesale level, posted a decline of 4.9 percent year-on-year in February, according to the NBS.
