SHANGHAI — China’s consumer price index, a key indicator of inflation, fell year-on-year to 3.2 percent in February, indicating the country’s overheated economy is beginning to cool off.
The February figure is the lowest inflation rate the country has experience in 20 months, according to the state run China Daily newspaper. January’s CPI was 4.5 percent, said National Bureau of Statistics, which released the new economic data Friday.
The inflation rate for food slowed to 6.2 percent last month, down from over 10 percent in January.
Retail sales for January-February rose 14.7 percent compared to a year earlier while factory production gained 11.4 percent over the two month time period.