Retail inflation hovered near double-digits in November due to stubbornly high food, pulses, cereals and sugar prices, data released by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) showed. The data highlights the price pressures in the economy that may prompt the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to delay any easing of its monetary policy.
The CSO said provisional annual inflation rate based on all-India general CPI (combined) for November is 9.90% as compared to 9.75% for the previous month of October, 2012.
The corresponding provisional inflation rates for rural and urban areas for November are 9.97% and 9.69%, respectively. Inflation rates (final) for rural and urban areas for October are 9.90% and 9.46%, respectively.
While policymakers have indicated that inflationary pressures may ease by March, economists say they expect inflation to remain at 7-8% levels for some time.
The extent of the price pressure was visible in the food segment.
The RBI has indicated that there is a likelihood of further policy easing in the fourth quarter of this fiscal, but has cautioned that the guidance would be conditioned by the evolving growth-inflation dynamic. Growth slowed to 5.3% in the July-September quarter, prompting calls for easing the tight monetary policy, but economists say the central bank’s stance would be guided by the inflation trend.
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