High food prices lift inflation to 4-mth high of 5.6% in Dec

Tribune News Service

Sandeep Dikshit

New Delhi, January 12

Huge price rise in vegetables, pulses and spices pushed retail inflation to a four-month high of 5.69% in December 2023, mainly on account of continuing higher food prices, according to official data released on Friday. Retail inflation was 5.55% in November, also due to higher food prices. However, as compared to December 2022, inflation was marginally down by 0.03%.

Rural areas hit hard

• Rural areas continued to groan under higher inflation at 5.93% whereas in urban areas inflation was at 5.46%
• The inflation rate in the food basket was 9.53% as against 8.7% in November 2023

Rural areas continued to groan under higher inflation with the December rate touching 5.93% whereas urban areas were comparatively in less discomfort due to a lower inflation rate of 5.46%. It was the same story in November too when rural inflation at 5.85% was higher than urban inflation of 5.26%. In October as well, rural inflation was 5.12% and urban inflation was 4.62%.

The inflation rate in the food basket was 9.53% as against 8.7% in November 2023, according to the National Statistical Office (NSO).

The higher inflation in the food basket caused more pain in urban areas where it was recorded at 10.42% as against 8.97% in rural areas.

However, higher prices of cereals pinched in rural areas as well where the inflation rate in this subgroup of food items was 10.31% as against 9.05% in urban areas. The inflation rate of milk and milk products in rural areas was higher than in urban areas.

The inflation rate exploded in the vegetable sub-segment where the inflation in rural areas was a whopping 25.43% and 31.34% in urban areas.

It was also extremely high in the pulses category. The rate was 19.77% in rural areas and 22.65% in urban areas to give a combined reading of 20.73%. Spices also became dearer by 20% in rural areas and 19% in urban areas.

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