Jump in consumer prices
23-02-2009
Consumer prices rose 3.1 percent last month from the same period last year. That's a big jump from December's 2.1 percent inflation rate, but the government says the higher CPI figure was largely down to strong consumption over the Lunar New Year in January. It expects inflation to fall as economic growth tails off over the course of the year. Food prices led the rise - with rice surging almost 40 percent in January from a year ago. However, after discounting the effect of the government power subsidy, the underlying inflation rate was 4.5 percent - slightly lower than the December figure.
