China's consumer, producer prices dip in January

China's consumer prices fell for a fourth consecutive month in January while factory-gate prices declined at a slower pace, the National Bureau of Statistics data showed on Thursday.

The country's consumer price index, a main gauge of inflation, dropped by 0.8 percent year-on-year in January, the NBS said, after a 0.3 percent decline in December. 

Within the CPI, prices of fresh vegetables fell 12.7 percent year-on-year in January, compared with a 0.5 percent rise in December. The decline in pork prices - a staple for Chinese dinner tables - narrowed from 26.1 percent in December to 17.3 percent in January.

On a month-on-month basis, the CPI increased by 0.3 percent in January, versus a 0.1 percent rise in December. 

The NBS said in a statement that the year-on-year decline in CPI came mainly due to the high comparison base in the previous year, attributing the month-on-month growth in CPI to the rise in pre-holiday consumer demand. 

China's producer price index, which gauges factory-gate prices, dropped by 2.5 percent from a year ago in January, following a 2.7 percent fall in December, the NBS said. 

The NBS said the PPI decline was affected by many factors, including the fluctuations in international commodity prices. 

On a month-on-month basis, the PPI dipped by 0.2 percent in January after a 0.3 percent decline in December, according to the NBS.