China's December inflation accelerates

China’s consumer price index increased 2.5% year-on-year in December, growing at a faster pace than the 2% annual increase in November, Dow Jones Newswires reported, citing data from the National Bureau of Statistics released Friday. The inflation rate was higher than the average 2.4% increase predicted by 16 economists polled in a Dow Jones Newswires survey. The index rose 0.8% in December compared to November, up from a 0.1% month-in-month increase in November. A report by South China Morning Post emphasized other aspects of the data, noting that inflation slowed to 2.5% annual growth in December from a year-on-year increase of 5.4% in the same month last year. The yearly inflation figure also outperformed the government’s target of 4%, a sign that prices were under control in 2012, it said. The December increase was due mainly to rising food prices, particularly for vegetables.