December Inflation Jumped To Five-month High

Inflation has further picked up pace, rising to a five-month high as pricier meals out, takeaway food and electricity charges drove up costs.

New official figures released on Thursday showed that consumer prices rose 2.4 percent year-on-year in December, up from the 1.8 percent increase recorded the previous month.

Netting out the effects of one-off government relief measures, the underlying inflation rate was 1.4 percent in December, 0.2 percentage points higher than that in November.

The government said prices of utilities jumped more than 54 percent from a year ago, while meals out and takeaway food were up nearly four percent.

Officials said a lower base of comparison due to last year's local epidemic situation had contributed to larger year-on-year price rises for meals out and takeaway food.

They also pointed out that clothing and footwear, as well as transport saw more visible price increases during the month.

For the whole year, inflation stood at 1.6 percent, up from the 0.3 percent logged for 2020.

The underlying inflation rate for 2021, meanwhile, averaged 0.6 percent.

"As the latest wave of local epidemic has weighed on some consumption-related activities and domestic cost pressures remain limited, the underlying inflation should stay broadly in check in the near term," said a government spokesperson.

But officials added that global inflation and the logistic disruptions may bring external prices further up in the near term.