National Bureau of Statistics: In February 2026, the CPI increase expanded while the PPI decline continued to narrow.

On March 9th, Dong Lijuan, Chief Statistician of the Urban Department of the National Bureau of Statistics, interpreted the CPI and PPI data for February 2026. In February, due to the influence of the Spring Festival, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 1.0% month-on-month and 1.3% year-on-year, with the core CPI excluding food and energy prices rising by 1.8% year-on-year. Influenced by the rise in international commodity prices, rapid growth in demand in certain domestic industries, and the continued effectiveness of macroeconomic policies, the national PPI rose by 0.4% month-on-month, but fell by 0.9% year-on-year, with the decline continuing to narrow. The original text is as follows: CPI Expansion in February 2026, Continued Narrowing of PPI Decline - Dong Lijuan, Chief Statistician of the Urban Department of the National Bureau of Statistics, interprets the CPI and PPI data for February 2026 In February, due to the influence of the Spring Festival, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 1.0% month-on-month and 1.3% year-on-year, with the core CPI excluding food and energy prices rising by 1.8% year-on-year. Influenced by the rise in international commodity prices, rapid growth in demand in certain domestic industries, and the continued effectiveness of macroeconomic policies, the national PPI rose by 0.4% month-on-month, but fell by 0.9% year-on-year, with the decline continuing to narrow. I. CPI Expansion In terms of the month-on-month changes, the national CPI has expanded from 0.2% last month to 1.0%, reaching its highest level in nearly two years. This is mainly due to the prolonged Spring Festival holiday leading to a concentrated release of consumer demand, resulting in a significant increase in service prices, higher than seasonal levels. Service prices increased by 1.1%, an increase of 0.9 percentage points from last month, influencing a 0.54 percentage point month-on-month increase in CPI. In the service sector, airfares, vehicle rentals, travel agency fees, and hotel accommodation prices increased by 31.1%, 24.7%, 15.8%, and 7.3% respectively, collectively influencing a 0.32 percentage point month-on-month increase in CPI, accounting for over 30% of the total CPI increase; pet services, vehicle repairs and maintenance, and household services increased by 12.0%, 11.6%, and 3.1%, respectively, while movie and show tickets, and dining out prices increased by 9.9% and 1.1%, influencing a 0.18 percentage point month-on-month increase in CPI. Industrial consumer prices rose by 0.4%, an increase of 0.1 percentage points from last month. Due to the rise in international gold prices, domestic gold jewelry prices rose by 6.2%, and the geopolitical impact of international conflicts on energy prices became evident, leading to a 3.1% increase in domestic gasoline prices, collectively influencing a 0.12 percentage point month-on-month increase in CPI. Although food prices remained stable last month, they increased by 1.9% this month, but the increase was still lower than seasonal levels, influencing a 0.33 percentage point increase in CPI. Among food items, there was an increased demand during the holiday period, causing prices of seafood, fresh fruits, and pork to rise by 6.9%, 4.0%, and 4.0% respectively, while lamb, beef, egg, and poultry prices rose between 1.6% and 2.2%, collectively influencing a 0.34 percentage point month-on-month increase in CPI; vegetable prices remained stable, with a slight decrease of 0.1%. In terms of year-on-year changes, due to the overlapping impact of the Spring Festival and the recovery of consumer demand, the national CPI increased from 0.2% last month to 1.3%, the highest level in nearly three years. Service prices rose by 1.6%, an increase of 1.5 percentage points from last month, influencing a 0.75 percentage point year-on-year increase in CPI. In the service sector, airfares, vehicle rentals, travel agency fees, and hotel accommodation prices which declined last month, turned around and increased by 29.1%, 19.8%, 12.5%, and 5.4% respectively; pet services, vehicle repairs and maintenance, household services, and takeout dining prices increased by 13.0%, 12.0%, 6.3%, and 5.6% respectively; movie and show ticket prices decreased by 1.1%; with the off-season for house rentals causing a 0.6% decrease in rental prices. Industrial consumer prices rose by 1.1%, an increase of 0.2 percentage points from last month. Among them, gold jewelry prices rose by 76.6%, a slight decrease in the rate of increase; prices of household appliances, household daily necessities, and clothing rose by 5.3%, 2.6%, and 2.0% respectively; gasoline prices fell by 9.8%; and car prices fell by 1.2%. Food prices, which decreased by 0.7% last month, increased by 1.7% this month, influencing a 0.30 percentage point year-on-year increase in CPI. Among food items, prices of vegetables, beef, lamb, and fresh fruits rose between 5.9% and 10.9%, with larger increases compared to last month, collectively influencing a 0.41 percentage point year-on-year increase in CPI; prices of pork and eggs decreased by 8.6% and 3.0% respectively, with a narrower decrease compared to last month, collectively influencing a 0.18 percentage point year-on-year decrease in CPI. II. Month-on-Month Increase in PPI, Continued Narrowing of Year-on-Year Decline In terms of month-on-month changes, the national PPI rose by 0.4%, with the same increase as last month, marking the fifth consecutive month of increase. The main characteristics of this month's PPI increase include: 1) the rise in international prices of nonferrous metals and crude oil leading to an increase in prices of related industries in the domestic market. Prices in the nonferrous metal ore mining and selection industry, as well as nonferrous metal smelting and processing industry rose by 7.1% and 4.6% respectively, with prices of silver smelting, gold smelting, aluminum smelting, and copper smelting rising by 16.9%, 8.4%, 4.2%, and 3.7% respectively. Prices in the petroleum and natural gas extraction industry, petroleum refining sector, and organic chemical raw material manufacturing sector rose by 5.1%, 0.7%, and 1.3% respectively. Influenced by cost factors, prices in the electrical machinery and equipment manufacturing industry rose by 1.2%, with prices in the wire and cable manufacturing sector rising by 2.3%. 2) The increase in computing power stimulating demand and leading to price increases in certain industries. Prices in the computer communication and other electronic equipment manufacturing industry rose by 0.6%, with prices of electronic semiconductors, external storage devices and components, and integrated circuit packaging testing series rising by 2.8%, 1.2%, and 1.1% respectively. In terms of year-on-year changes, the national PPI fell by 0.9%, with the decline narrowing by 0.5 percentage points from last month, marking the third consecutive month of narrowing decline. The sustained integration effects of domestic macroeconomic policies have been evident, with positive changes in prices in certain industries. 1) Accelerated construction of modern industrial systems leading to price increases in related industries. Prices in the electronic components and electronic special materials manufacturing industry rose by 4.9%, with prices of micro motors rising by 1.6%, and prices of service consumption and Siasun Robot&Automation manufacturing rising by 0.7%; continuous promotion of green transformation leading to price increases in biomass fuel processing by 3.2% and environmental protection special equipment manufacturing by 0.6%; strong growth in high-end equipment leading to price increases in aircraft manufacturing by 7.7%, ship and related equipment manufacturing by 0.5%, and additive manufacturing equipment manufacturing by 0.3%. 2) Continued optimization of market competition order, with prices in certain industries stabilizing and rising year-on-year. The comprehensive regulation of capacity management and "internal competition" in key industries continues to show results, with prices in the photovoltaic equipment and components manufacturing industry rising by 3.2%, an increase of 2.7 percentage points from last month; prices in the lithium-ion battery manufacturing industry, which had previously decreased by 1.1%, rose by 0.2%, marking the first increase after 33 consecutive months of decline; prices in the coal mining and washing industry, cement manufacturing industry, new energy vehicle manufacturing industry, and black metal smelting and processing industry saw declines narrow by 2.8, 1.5, 0.5, and 0.3 percentage points respectively. This article is compiled from the National Bureau of Statistics, edited by GMTEight: Chen Wenfang.