Retail inflation for September rises to 5.49% driven by food prices

CPI inflation September 2024: The All India Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation for September 2024 increased to 5.49 per cent from August’s 3.65 per cent, primarily driven by a rise in food prices. In September 2023, the consumer price index-based inflation stood at 5.02 per cent.
The data from the National Statistics Office revealed that the inflation in the food basket surged to 9.24 per cent in September, compared to 5.66 per cent in August and 6.62 per cent in the same month last year.
Earlier this month, the Reserve Bank maintained the key short-term lending rate unchanged. The government has assigned the Reserve Bank the responsibility of keeping inflation at 4 per cent, with a tolerance range of 2 per cent in either direction.
In September 2024, the housing sector in urban areas experienced a year-on-year inflation rate of 2.78%, a slight increase from the previous month’s rate of 2.66%. The housing index, which is exclusively compiled for urban areas, reflects this change.
The electricity sector also witnessed changes in September 2024, with the All India Electricity index reaching 162.5 and the inflation rate standing at 5.45%. In comparison, the index and inflation rate for August 2024 were 162.4 and 4.91%, respectively.
September 2024 also saw notable decreases in inflation rates across several food-related subgroups, including Pulses and products, Spices, Meat & fish and Sugar & confectionery.