BEIJING-- China's consumer price index (CPI) is likely to grow 2.8 percent in July from a year earlier, slightly up from the 2.7 percent growth seen in June, according to the Bank of Communications.

July's official CPI, a main gauge of inflation, is due to be released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Friday.

A rebound in pork prices may boost the July CPI, as food prices account for nearly one-third of the prices used to calculate it, said Tang Jianwei, the bank's senior economist.

The prices of farm produce in 36 major cities continued to climb last week, with the price of pork and the wholesale prices of 18 kinds of vegetables gaining 1.5 percent and 1.2 percent, respectively, according to the Ministry of Commerce.

China's CPI grew to 2.7 percent year on year in June, up from 2.1 percent in May. The figure remains well below the government's full-year target of 3.5 percent.