China to keep consumer inflation at around 3 pct in 2018

China aims to keep consumer inflation at around 3 percent in 2018, according to a government work report available to the media Monday morning ahead of the annual parliamentary session.[Special coverage]

Over the past five years, consumer prices rose at an average annual rate of 1.9 percent, maintaining a relatively low level of growth.

In 2017, China's consumer price index (CPI) rose 1.6 percent year on year, lower than the around 3-percent annual target.

The CPI rose 1.5 percent year on year in January, according to the National Bureau of Statistics data.