India’s consumer price inflation hovers around 5-year lows at 3.65%

Consumer price inflation in India, based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI), stood at 3.65 per cent in August 2024, up slightly from the 5-year low of 3.60 per cent hit in the previous month, provisional figures released by the national Statistics Office (NSO) showed.

The annual rate of inflation based on the Consumer Price Index (Base 2012=100), stood at 6.83 per cent in August 2023.

While food prices generally were ruling high, the decline in inflation rate can also be attributed to lower prices of some sub-groups like spices, meat, fish and pulses etc.

Inflation rate based on the food price index stood at 4.16 per cent in August 2024 against 5.42 per cent in July and 9.94 per cent in August 2023.

The decline in consumer price inflation would give the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) which has been holding its policy repo rate at its peak 6.5 per cent for years together, more room for policy manoeuvre.

Consumer price inflation for rural areas stood at 4.16 per cent in August 2024 against 4.10 per cent in July and 4.78 per cent in June 2023.

Inflation rate for urban consumers stood at 4.39 per cent in June 2024 against 4.15 per cent in May and 7.02 per cent in August 2023.

Food price inflation for rural areas stood at 6.02 per cent in August 2024 against 5.89 per cent in July and 9.67 per cent in August 2023.

Food price inflation for urban areas stood at 4.99 per cent in August 2024 against 4.63 per cent in July and 10.42 per cent in August 2023.