Retail inflation at almost 2-year high at 5.54%, driven by food prices surge
Retail inflation in India reached 5.54% in September, mainly spurred by rising food costs. Food inflation escalated to 7.74%, the highest recorded since the new CPI series was launched. The price of onions skyrocketed, while some items, like potatoes and tomatoes, saw price drops. Puducherry recorded the highest inflation rate at 6.86%, followed by Tamil Nadu.
Retail inflation hit nearly a two-year high of 5.54% in September, propelled by a surge in food prices, according to data released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation. The increase in food inflation to 7.74% marked the highest rate since the new Consumer Price Index (CPI) series with a 2024 base year was introduced.
Rural areas experienced even steeper inflation, with retail inflation reaching 6.08%, up from 5.24% in August, while urban areas saw a rise to 4.88%, from 4.31%. Among individual food items, onion prices surged to 108.09% in September, up from 48.78% the previous month, while ginger prices rose 62.85% and garlic prices accelerated to 54.62%.
Other notable increases included lemon prices at 36.41% and silver jewellery at 87.80%. While some prices declined, such as potatoes (-11.50%) and tomatoes (-8.62%), motor cars and jeeps fell 4.51%, and lady finger and coconut prices dropped 4.48% and 3.99%, respectively. Food and beverage inflation stood at 7.36%, while health inflation increased moderately by 1.40%.
The highest inflation rates were recorded in Puducherry (6.86%), Tamil Nadu (6.81%), Odisha (6.70%), Madhya Pradesh (6.68%), and Telangana (6.64%). The September figures were provisional, with the next CPI release scheduled for November 12.
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