BEIJING - The growth of China's inflation rate is expected to ease in April from the previous month with the slowing of food price rises, according to a report released by the Bank of Communications.

The consumer price index (CPI), a main gauge of inflation, is likely to increase 3.3 percent year-on-year in April, slightly down from March's 3.6-percent growth, the bank said in an email report to its clients.

The bank attributed the slowdown to slower food price rises and a smaller carryover effect from last year, which was 0.1 percentage points less than that of March.

Food prices, which account for one-third of the basket of goods used to calculate China's CPI, will decline 0.5 to 1 percent in April from March, it said.

It also projected non-food prices to fall 1.6 percent month-on-month in April.

The National Bureau of Statistics is scheduled to release April's economic data on May 11, which will include the CPI and figures for industrial production, retail sales and fixed asset investment.

The Chinese government aims to keep CPI growth around 4 percent for the year.