Retail inflation eases marginally to 6.44% in February from 6.52% in Jan

India’s consumer price inflation (CPI)-based inflation eased marginally to 6.44 per cent in February, data released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation showed. This is lower than 6.52 per cent in January but still above the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) upper tolerance limit of 6 per cent.

The rural inflation was 6.72 per cent and urban inflation was 6.10 per cent. The combined food inflation was also near 6 per cent limit at 5.95 per cent. It was 6 per cent in January.

On Sunday, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) member Ashima Goyal said that Inflation in India is expected to come down over the year. She added that the government’s supply-side action coordinated with a flexible inflation-targeting regime has kept the rate of price rise lower than that in other countries.

Goyal also said that India has successfully dealt with ‘pluri-shocks’ over the past three years, showing considerable resilience.

The RBI has raised its benchmark repo rate by 250 basis points since May last year. According to reports, there is expectations of another 25 basis points hike to 6.75 per cent in April before it hits the pause button.

The RBI earlier lowered the CPI forecast to 6.5 per cent for the current fiscal from 6.7 per cent. Before that in December, the inflation was at a one-year low of 5.72 per cent.