China should remain on high alert for inflation

BEIJING - China's central bank governor Zhou Xiaochuan said Wednesday that China should remain on high alert for inflation and the bank will take measures, including monetary policy adjustments, to stabilize prices.

Zhou Xiaochuan, 1st right, China's central bank governor, speaks at a news conference on China's currency policy and financial reform held by the first session of the 12th National People's Congress (NPC) in Beijing, capital of China, March 13, 2013. [Photo/Xinhua]

Zhou made the remarks at a press conference on the sidelines of the parliament's annual session.

China's consumer price index (CPI), the main gauge of inflation, rebounded to a 10-month high of 3.2 percent in February.

Zhou attributed the higher-than-expected index partly to the lower comparison base last year as the data was calculated on a year-on-year basis.

On a month-on-month basis, February's CPI gained 1.1 percent from the previous month.

China aims to hold this year's consumer price growth at around 3.5 percent, lower than the 4-percent target for 2012 but higher than last year's actual inflation rate of 2.6 percent.