China consumer prices rise 4.5%, above estimates

HONG KONG (MarketWatch)
China's consumer prices rose at a faster-than-expected rate of 4.5% in January from the year-ago period in a likely setback to expectations that Beijing may loosen its monetary policy in the near term
The January consumer price index trounced expectations of a 4.1% increase estimated by economists and follows a decline in the rate in the recent past
China's CPI rose 4.1% in December, 4.2% in November and 5.5% in October
However, official data released Thursday also showed that China's producer-price index eased further, rising 0.7% during the month as compared to 1.7% in December
Economists polled by Dow Jones Newswires had expected a 0.6% increase in January PPI