SHENZHEN’S consumer price index (CPI) in February rose 3.7 percent compared with the same period last year, reaching its highest mark in the past two years, the Shenzhen survey office of the National Statistics Bureau said.

February’s CPI was up 2.1 percent over January’s. The price rise was mainly driven by consumption during the Spring Festival holiday period.

“Food prices in February grew by 7.2 percent compared to January, and the prices of nonfood goods increased by 0.9 percent, while the prices of consumer products and service items went up by 2.3 percent and 1.7 percent, respectively, compared to those in January,” said Wu Jianming, spokesman of the survey office.

The prices of some aquatic products, like crab and shrimp, increased by 30.2 percent, and the prices of fresh-water fish and seawater fish increased by 18.2 percent and 8.4 percent, respectively, during the Spring Festival holiday, compared to prices in January.

The price of pork increased by 8.5 percent, and due to the cold snaps that affected Shenzhen during the holidays, the price of fresh vegetables increased by 21.2 percent.

Some travelers who spent the Spring Festival holiday in Shenzhen were surprised by the prices in the city.

“I know Shenzhen is expensive, but I was still surprised when I saw the prices,” a woman surnamed Lin said, recalling her experience purchasing food on the Chinese New Year’s Eve.

The shortage of housekeepers and other service industry employees in February also caused prices in the industry to rise, according to Wu.

“We have to pay higher salaries to those who stay to work during the Spring Festival period,” said a businessman, surnamed Li, who operates a car maintenance shop in Futian District, adding that most of the revenue from price hikes went toward the employees’ extra pay.

Statistics show the price of car maintenance and repair increased by 28.5 percent in February over January. The price for housekeeping services increased by 16.6 percent.

Fares for long-distance buses also increased by 43 percent over January, as operators implemented a Spring Festival holiday fee standard Feb. 1, the start of the Spring Festival transport season. (Han Ximin)