Chinese inflation remained stable in January, bucking a long-established pattern of a spike in prices ahead of the country’s New Year holiday.
Consumer prices rose 2.5 per cent from a year earlier, the same as in December. The reason for the more moderate inflation pressure compared with the normal seasonal rhythm were subdued food prices in the lead-up to the New Year’s celebration.
But the reasons given by analysts for flat food prices were as varied as the dishes on a Chinese banquet table. They included: unusually warm weather, ample pork production, slowing economic growth, a strong renminbi and quieter New Year’s festivities in response to President Xi Jinping’s campaign against extravagance.