The Ministry of Statistics and Program Implementation has released the domestic Consumer Price Index (CPI) data for January 2023. According to the data, the retail inflation rate (CPI) has come down to 6.52 percent in January. Inflation in December was 5.72 per cent, while in November the figure was 5.88 per cent.
New Delhi: The Ministry of Statistics and Program Implementation has released the domestic Consumer Price Index (CPI) data for January 2023. According to the data, the retail inflation rate (CPI) has come down to 6.52 percent in January. Inflation in December was 5.72 per cent, while in November the figure was 5.88 per cent.
Surveys conducted by several institutions were estimating CPI inflation to rise to 6.1% in January on an unfavorable base and core pressures. According to the latest data, retail inflation has returned to over 6 per cent in January from a one-year low of 5.72 per cent in December.
Headwind inflation appears to be on the upswing due to an adverse base effect. There is still no expected moderation in food inflation and food prices continue to rise. Food inflation showed an adverse effect in January despite softening prices of several essential commodities and a healthy rabi sowing trend.
According to data from the Department of Consumer Affairs, out of 22 items on which it collects data, the prices of 16 declined from January to December. On month-on-month basis, the items which saw the biggest decline in prices were Tomato, Potato and Onion. However, the sequential decline in their prices was less than in December.
The pace of decline in vegetable prices, except onion, potato and tomato, has slowed down, while the prices of cereals are witnessing a sustained rise.
Let us tell you that the CPI Food Index fell by 1.3 percent month-on-month to 164.9 in January 2022. This period will be the basis for computing the inflation figure for the previous month. Economists believe that non-food, non-fuel prices remain high and keeping core inflation around 6 per cent is a major challenge for the RBI.
