Retail inflation rises on higher food prices

NEW DELHI: Food prices rose sharply in July as weekend lockdowns to contain the Covid-19 pandemic and widespread flooding clogged supply lines in several parts of the country, leading to overall inflation firming up, data released on Thursday by the Union government showed.

The consumer-price index (CPI) in July rose 6.9% from a year ago, while food items, as measured by the index, became nearly 10% costlier, according to the data from the ministry of statistics and programme implementation. Retail prices had risen 6.2% in June, while food prices in the previous month rose 8.7%. CPI measures what households pay for everyday items, including food, fuel, clothing, housing and electricity. Retail inflation in July increased for the fourth straight month, above the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) acceptable limit of 4% (+/- 2). RBI governor Shaktikanta Das, after the central bank’s monetary policy committee (MPC) meeting on August 6, pointed to the possibility of elevated prices. MPC is the panel that reviews the country’s monetary policy.