Chinese inflation rate rises to 3.6% in March

China's inflation rate edged up in March from the previous month, according to official data, as bad weather pushed up food prices and authorities raised the price of fuel. The consumer price index (CPI) rose to 3.6 percent in March from 3.2 percent in February, slightly higher than analysts' expectations. "CPI was mainly pushed up by food prices, which resulted from an undersupply of vegetables due to relatively cold weather in March," Li Huiyong, a Shanghai-based analyst at Shenyin Wanguo Securities, told AFP on Monday. Inflation hit its lowest rate since 2010 in February and analysts expect it to remain under four percent this year, despite this month's price rises. "We think the downward trend will likely be unchanged, with the CPI bottoming out in July this year," Li added. Premier Wen Jiabao, speaking at the opening of the annual session of parliament in March, warned consumer prices remained high and said the government's aim was to keep inflation within four percent this year. The producer price index, which measures the cost of goods at the farm and factory gate and is a leading indicator of consumer prices, fell 0.3 percent year-on-year in March.