This photo taken on Feb. 15, 2023 shows a view of the crowded Laowaitan, a signature pedestrian street in Ningbo, east China's Zhejiang Province. (Xinhua/Jiang Han)

China's consumer price index (CPI), a main gauge of inflation, rose 1 percent year on year in February, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said Thursday.

The figure was lower than the 2.1-percent increase recorded in January, according to a NBS statement. On a monthly basis, the consumer prices dropped 0.5 percent, reversing the 0.8 percent-increase in the previous month.

Dong Lijuan, a statistician with the NBS, attributed the mild inflation to retreating market demand after the Spring Festival holiday that falls in January and ample goods supply.

Compared to January, food prices, especially that of the staple meat pork and vegetables, played the main role in dragging down the overall price level. Non-food prices also inched down, with falling costs in travel, cinema tickets and services from haircuts to housekeeping.

The country's core CPI, deducting food and energy prices, climbed 0.6 percent from a year ago last month, down from 1 percent seen in January, Dong said.

The NBS data also showed China's producer price index, which measures costs for goods at the factory gate, went down 1.4 percent year on year and remained flat on a monthly basis in February.