Inflation rate expected to tick up in China

BEIJING - China's consumer price index (CPI), a main gauge of inflation, is expected to see a marked increase in March, according to a research report.

The CPI is likely to rise by 2 percent to 2.4 percent year-on-year in March, the Bank of Communications financial research center said in the report.

That would be an acceleration from the 1.5-percent growth recorded in February.

The report attributed the expected higher inflation to increased prices of pork, a staple meat in the country, and oil.

As a result of the African swine fever outbreaks, pork prices significantly went up in March, which will push food prices higher, according to the report.

Meanwhile, rebounding global oil prices will lead to a mild increase in non-food prices.

The National Bureau of Statistics will release the official March CPI data on April 11.

Despite the expected higher monthly inflation rate, China's core CPI growth, which excludes food and energy price fluctuations, has remained below 2 percent for six months in a row, and there is little possibility that it could be driven up significantly by demand this year, according to the report.

Therefore, inflation will not constrain the country's monetary policy maneuvering this year, it said.