China's Dec CPI growth to remain below 2%

The growth of China's Consumer Price Index, or CPI, a main gauge of inflation, is expected to be below 2 percent year-on-year in December, the Economic Information Daily reported on Monday.

The country's CPI will grow 1.8 percent year-on-year in December, said the newspaper, citing Zhong Zhengsheng, chief economist at Ping An Securities.

Zhong said the average wholesale price index for agricultural products decreased 2.4 percent month-on-month, with figures in pork, fruit, egg and vegetable up 0.1 percent, 3.3 percent, -4.9 percent and -9.1 percent, respectively.

The energy consumption-related CPI is expected to fall as domestic refined oil products were cut twice, and the average monthly price growth for gasoline slipped from 41.6 percent to 25.7 percent year-on-year, Zhong added.

December's CPI growth will decline to 1.6 percent year-on-year. Vegetable prices have dropped markedly, leading to whole food prices going down, with a month-on-month decline about 1 percent, said Dong Qi, chief analyst at Guotai Junan Securities.

Prices for fresh vegetables and pork have fallen, and as CPI drops, the figure will increase 1.7 percent year-on-year in December, said Li Chao, chief economist at Zheshang Securities.