BEIJING, May 17 (Reuters) - China's economic improvement will be further consolidated and strengthened as macro policies take effect, Liu Aihua, a spokesperson of the National Bureau of Statistics, said on Friday.

China's consumer price index (CPI) is expected to grow mildly in the next stage, Liu told a news conference. (Reporting by Ellen Zhang and Kevin Yao; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)