date:Mar 11, 2013
nsus, with the 1.1 percent increase the strongest monthly gain since January 2012's rise of 1.5 percent. Economists polled by Reuters had expected a 0.8 percent rise.
The sharp rise in food prices underlined that seasonal distortions caused by the timing of Lunar New Year festivities - which were in February this year and in January in 2012 - were key drivers of the headline annual rise in prices.
Going into March, with the Lunar New Year impact fading and weather turning better, all condition