Retail inflation accelerated to 4.82 per cent in August from 4.45 per cent in July, staying above the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI’s) 4 per cent median benchmark target for a third consecutive month, as food prices firmed and services inflation stayed sticky, showed data released by the National Statistics Office (NSO) on Monday.
The 37-basis-point sequential jump — the eighth print under the updated 2024 consumer price index (CPI) series — is the highest reading in the new series and is estimated to be around a 20-month high when compared with the back-series data released earlier by the NSO.
The last time headline inflation ran higher was in December 2024, when it stood at 5.22 per cent.
Food inflation, measured by the Consumer Food Price Index (CFPI), rose to 5.95 per cent in August from 5.52 per cent in July, driven by a sharp rise in the prices of onion (48.27 per cent), garlic (43.60 per cent) and ginger (73.82 per cent). Onion inflation more than doubled from 22.54 per cent in July.
The divergence within the food basket persisted, with tomato and potato prices continuing to fall. Tomato slid deeper into deflation at -31.09 per cent from -4.6 per cent in July, and potato eased to -13.14 per cent from -16.56 per cent.
Among the 12 major divisions, personal care, social protection and miscellaneous goods and services remained the single biggest inflation driver at 15.17 per cent, up from 14.77 per cent in July, as gold and silver prices held at elevated global levels. Silver jewellery inflation stood at 107.11 per cent and gold, diamond and platinum jewellery at 35.53 per cent.
Restaurants and accommodation services recorded 8.38 per cent inflation, up from 7.72 per cent in July. Higher inflation was also visible in transport, where inflation edged up to 4.60 per cent from 4.43 per cent in July.
Retail inflation in rural areas rose to 5.23 per cent, well ahead of the 4.31 per cent recorded in urban areas.
