In February, the CPI in Sichuan turned from decline to increase year-on-year, and the increase in consumer demand during the Spring Festival led to an increase.

On March 11th, the data released by the Sichuan Survey Corps of the National Bureau of Statistics showed that in February 2024, the consumer price index (CPI) in Sichuan changed from a year-on-year decrease of 1.4% to an increase of 0.5%, with an obvious rebound. It rose by 1.1% from the previous month, and the growth rate was 1 percentage point higher than that of the previous month.

Data show that in February, the price of food, tobacco and alcohol decreased by 0.5% year-on-year and increased by 1.7% quarter-on-quarter. Among them, the prices of fresh vegetables, aquatic products and pork increased year-on-year and month-on-month. In particular, pork prices stopped falling and rebounded, rising by 3.7% year-on-year and 6.6% quarter-on-quarter. The reporter noted that this is the first time that pork prices have turned up since they fell for nine consecutive months in May last year.

According to the analysis, the prices of fresh vegetables, pork and aquatic products all rose, mainly due to the increase in consumer demand during the Spring Festival, and the decline in supply in some areas due to factors such as rain and snow.

During the Spring Festival holiday, the increased demand for tourism and cultural and entertainment consumption also supported the service price in stages. In February, the price of education, culture and entertainment in Sichuan increased by 5.0% year-on-year and 2.8% quarter-on-quarter. The price of transportation and communication decreased by 0.1% year-on-year and increased by 2.7% quarter-on-quarter.

"In February, Sichuan CPI turned from a year-on-year decline to an increase, which was also related to the wrong month of the Spring Festival." The relevant person in charge of the Consumer Price Survey Department of the Sichuan Survey Corps of the National Bureau of Statistics said that the Spring Festival in 2023 was in January, and the Spring Festival this year was in February. Due to the low base in the same period last year, the CPI in February rebounded more year-on-year. Before and after the Spring Festival, the consumer demand for buying new year’s goods, visiting relatives and friends, traveling and so on increases, which often pushes up the prices of food and services in stages.(Reporter   Shi Xiaolu)