Retail Inflation Rises To 5.03% In February Amid Rise In Food, Fuel Prices

 

 

etail inflation rose 5.03 per cent in February 2021, owing to higher food and fuel prices, government data showed on Friday. This was higher than a recent poll conducted by news agency Reuters, which estimated that the retail inflation climbed 4.83 per cent in February from January's 4.06 per cent. The food inflation — or inflation in the prices of food items last month rose from 1.96 per cent in January to 3.87 per cent in February. The Reuters poll was conducted between March 5-9 with over 50 economists. (Also Read: India's Retail Inflation Probably Rose In February: Poll )

The retail inflation rising 5.03 per cent in February is within the Reserve Bank of India's comfort zone of two per cent - six per cent, for the third straight month. According to data released by the National Statistical Office (NSO), the inflation in ‘fuel and light' category remained elevated at 3.53 per cent during the month, compared to 3.87 per cent in January.

The minutes of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Monetary Policy Committee's February meeting showed that the members raised concerns about the upside risks to inflation, but the bank kept its repo rate at a record low 4.0 per cent, saying it would ensure ample liquidity.  

Meanwhile, the central bank had projected the retail inflation at 5.2 per cent for the fourth quarter of the current fiscal, in its monetary policy announcement last month. The Monetary Policy Committee led by the RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das, expected the gross domestic product (GDP) growth to be at 10.5 per cent in the next fiscal year, lower than the projections by Economic Survey 2021 and International Monetary Fund.