North India Statesman
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New Delhi: Consumer Price Index (CPI) based retail inflation increased to 6.21 percent in October due to increase in food prices. Which is the highest in the last 14 months. Retail inflation rate was recorded at 5.49 percent in September. The retail inflation rate in October 2023 was 4.87 percent. Let us tell you that from September 2023 the retail inflation rate was less than 6 percent. The retail inflation rate in August 2023 was recorded at 6.83.
It is noteworthy that RBI considers retail inflation data while deciding its bi-monthly monetary policy. The central government has given the RBI a target to keep retail inflation at four percent (with a discount of two percent).
Food inflation rate has increased to 9.69 percent in October. Which was 9.24 percent in September. Rural inflation has also increased from 5.87 percent to 6.68 percent in September.
Urban inflation rate has increased from 5.05 percent last month to 5.62 percent. The food inflation rate in rural areas has been 10.69 percent and in urban areas it has been 11.09 percent.
The increase in food inflation is due to increase in prices of essential commodities like vegetables, fruits and oil. Prices of tomatoes, onions and potatoes remained high throughout the month. Onion prices increased from Rs 40-60 per kg to Rs 70-80 per kg.
According to ICRA Chief Economist Aditi Nair, RBI may cut interest rates from February 2025. Due to increasing retail inflation, there is no possibility of reduction in interest rates at present.
At the same time, according to the data released today by the Central Government, industrial production based on Index of Industrial Production (IIP) has increased by 3.1 percent in September. Industrial production growth in August 2023 was minus 0.1 percent.
Industrial production picked up in September due to good performance in sectors such as mining, manufacturing and power generation. According to data released by the National Statistical Office (NSO), the mining sector grew by 0.2 per cent, the manufacturing sector by 3.9 per cent and the power sector by 0.5 per cent in September.
