China's consumer price index (CPI), a main gauge of inflation, accelerated to its fastest in five months, government data showed on Sunday.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the CPI was up 0.5 percent year on year last month, up from the 0.1 percent increase in December.

NBS statistician Dong Lijuan said the increase in January was due largely to the influence of the Spring Festival holiday.

The core CPI, which excludes food and energy prices, rose 0.6 percent from a year ago in January, up from the 0.4 percent increase in December.

On a monthly basis, the CPI expanded 0.7 percent in January.

Analysts said consumer spending over the holiday was mixed. While people flocked to movie theatres and spent more on shopping, catering and domestic travel, per capita spending during the holiday grew by only 1.2 percent from a year earlier, versus a 9.4 percent rise in 2024, analysts at ANZ estimated.

The NBS data also showed the country's producer price index (PPI), which measures costs for goods at the factory gate, went down 2.3 percent year on year in January, matching the drop the month before.

On a month-on-month basis, the PPI dropped 0.2 percent. (Xinhua/Reuters)