China’s consumer price index grew 2.3 percent from the previous year in February due to surging food prices, said the National Bureau of Statistics of China on Thursday.

It is higher than a market forecast of a 1.8-percent growth. It is also the fastest expansion in 19 months, Chinese state-run news agency Xinhua reported.

Yu Qiumei, senior statistician at the bureau, said in a statement accompanying the result, that food prices – which soared 7.3 percent year-on-year in February – drove the inflation.

The cost of vegetables and pork rose due to a supply shortage during a cold period in February and rising demand in Chinese New Year holidays, the statistician said. Vegetable prices jumped 30.6 percent year-on-year in February, accounting for 0.86 percentage points of the inflation growth.

The Chinese Government announced in its annual work report last week a 3 percent inflation target for this year. If inflation in a country is too low, it can hurt the economy as businesses and individual consumers often postpone purchases, anticipating even lower prices, Xinhua reported.