India’s annual retail inflation in July rose to its highest in 15 months as vegetable and cereals prices skyrocketed, beating all market expectations and putting pressure on the government to take action to bring down prices.
India’s annual retail inflation (INCPIY=ECI) rose sharply to 7.44% in July from 4.87% the previous month. A Reuters poll of 53 economists had forecast a rate of 6.40%. The figure was the highest since April 2022, when the print was 7.79%.
The figures breached the upper end of the central bank’s inflation band of 2%-6% for the first time in five months.
“The spurt in CPI inflation in July 2023 was on expected lines, however, 7.44% retail inflation was totally unexpected,” said Devendra Pant, economist at India Ratings.
Food inflation, which accounts for nearly half of the overall consumer price basket, rose at a staggering pace of 11.51% in June as compared with 4.49% in June. Retail food inflation was at its highest since January 2020, when it was over 13%.— Reuters
