Travel and spending during China’s Lunar New Year holiday hit new records this year, giving the government an encouraging boost as it seeks to ramp up the ailing economy.

Inflation picked up in China last month, official figures showed Sunday, as the Lunar New Year holiday boosted January spending. The boost in prices last month is "mainly due to higher food prices and tourism-related services prices on an earlier-than-usual Lunar New Year holiday,

Travelers spread across China this Lunar New Year, leading to 677 billion yuan ($93 billion) in domestic tourism spending.

Statistics indicate domestic consumption broke several records during this year’s holiday, with lower-end spending seeing the biggest gains.