India’s consumer price inflation down marginally at 5.09% in February

Consumer price inflation in India, based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI), declined marginally to 5.09 per cent in February 2024, from 5.10 per cent in January 2024.

Preliminary data released by the National Statistics Office (NSO) show that inflationary pressures continue to persist in the economy.

CPI inflation stood at 6.44 per cent in February 2023.

The annual rate of inflation based on the Consumer Price Index (Base 2012=100), which reached a peak of 7.44 per cent in July last year, has refused to fall fast amidst volatility in commodity prices.

Inflation based on the food price index climbed to 8.66 per cent in February 2024 from 8.30 per cent in January. It was 5.59 per cent in February 2023. Food prices account for nearly half of the overall consumer price index.

With the Reserve Bank of India continuing to hold its policy repo rate at 6.5 per cent for the sixth time in a row, consumer prices have shown a declining trend in the past few months 

Consumer price inflation for rural areas stood at 5.34 per cent in February 2024, unchanged from the previous month. It was 6.72 per cent in February 2023. 

Inflation rate for urban consumers declined to 4.78 per cent in February 2024 against 4.92 per cent in January. It was 6.10 per cent in February 2023.

Food price inflation for rural areas shot up to 8.21 per cent in February 2024 from 7.91 per cent in January. It was lower at 6.60 in February 2023.

Food price inflation for urban areas also stood at 9.19 per cent in February 2024 against 9.02 per cent in January. It was 5.09 per cent in February 2023.