The consumer price index, a key measure of inflation, rose 1.3 percent year-on-year in February, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.

It was the biggest year-on-year jump since January 2023 when consumer prices rose 2.1 percent compared to the same period a year prior.

February's figure was well above the 0.2 percent rise recorded in January, which was down from December's 0.8 percent.

It was also above the 0.9 percent increase forecast in a Bloomberg survey.

Local authorities across China had vowed to encourage domestic spending ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday, which fell in February and typically sees travel and shopping expenditure spike.

Beijing wants to shift away from traditional growth drivers such as exports and manufacturing, but results have been muted with people unwilling to spend.

Last week, China's leaders set a target of 4.5-5 percent growth in annual gross domestic product (GDP) for 2026.

It is the lowest growth target since 1991, according to AFP research, except for in 2020 when no target was set as the economy reeled from the Covid-19 pandemic.