BEIJING (Reuters) -China's consumer inflation accelerated to its fastest in five months in January while producer price deflation persisted, reflecting mixed consumer spending and weak factory activity.

Deflationary pressures are likely to persist in China this year, analysts say, unless policymakers can rekindle sluggish domestic demand, with tariffs by U.S. President Donald Trump on Chinese goods adding pressure on Beijing to spur growth in the world's second-largest economy.

The consumer price index rose 0.5% last month from a year earlier, quickening from December's 0.1% gain, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed on Sunday, above the 0.4% rise estimate in a Reuters poll of economists.

Core inflation, excluding volatile prices for food and fuel, sped up to 0.6% in January from 0.4% the previous month.

Although consumer prices are expected to rise gradually, producer prices are unlikely to return to positive territory in the short term as overcapacity in industrial goods persists, said Xu Tianchen, senior economist at the Economist Intelligence Unit.

"If measured by the GDP deflator, it will still take a few quarters to get out of deflation, " Xu said.

The numbers were skewed by seasonal factors, as the Lunar New Year, China's biggest annual holiday, began in January this year versus February last year. Typically, prices rise as consumers stockpile goods, particularly food for big family gatherings.

Prices of airplane tickets rose 8.9% from a year earlier, tourism inflation was 7.0% and movie and performance ticket prices rose 11.0%.

Consumer spending reports over the holidays were mixed, reflecting worries over wage and job security.