A consumer buys fruit at a supermarket in Fuyang, East China's Anhui province, on March 10, 2020. (LU QIJIAN / FOR CHINA DAILY)

BEIJING - China's consumer inflation eased in May on retreating food prices as the country restored work and production orderly amid generally stable COVID-19 situation, official data showed Wednesday.

China's consumer price index (CPI), a main gauge of inflation, rose 2.4 percent year-on-year in May, moderating from the 3.3-percent growth in April, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

The reading eased from the 3.3-percent growth in April, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics

On a monthly basis, consumer prices went down by 0.8 percent. Food prices, which account for nearly one-third of weighting in China's CPI, dropped 3.5 percent last month.

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In breakdown, vegetable prices fell 12.5 percent from April over rising supplies. Pork prices declined 8.1 percent from a month earlier as hog production continued to recover and warm weather dampened consumption.

Compared with the same period last year, food prices remained the main driver of consumer inflation in May, while its growth rate tapered from April to 10.6 percent.

In the first five months of this year, CPI went up 4.1 percent year-on-year on average.

PPI down 3.7%

Wednesday's data also showed that China's producer price index (PPI), which measures costs for goods at the factory gate, dropped 3.7 percent year-on-year in May.

READ MORE: China's factory-gate prices fall 3.1% in April

The decline widened from the 3.1-percent decrease in April, NBS data showed.

Citing the narrowing trend in month-on-month PPI reading, NBS senior statistician Dong Lijuan said industrial production further rebounded last month with an improvement in market demand

On a month-on-month basis, the PPI fell 0.4 percent last month, narrowing from the 1.3-percent drop in April, according to the NBS.

In the first five months, the average PPI fell by 1.7 percent over the same period last year.

Factory prices of production materials dropped 5.1 percent year-on-year in May, dragging down the overall PPI by 3.79 percentage points.

Citing the narrowing trend in month-on-month PPI reading, NBS senior statistician Dong Lijuan said industrial production further rebounded last month with an improvement in market demand.

Dong attributed the sharper annual PPI decline in May mainly to a higher comparison basis in the same period last year.

Wen Bin, chief analyst at China Minsheng Bank, said the May PPI fell more than expected due to the impact of the COVID-19 epidemic on domestic enterprises, as well as the low international oil prices that dampened prices of production materials.

However, with inflation continuing to ease, China will enjoy greater room for monetary policy, stated Wen in a co-authored research note. He suggested monetary policies to further focus on stabilizing employment and ensuring people's lives, as well as increasing support for small firms.