Food inflation hits 9-week low...Fuel inflation steady

Food inflation in India fell sharply in the second week of November to touch its lowest level in nine weeks, and fuel inflation too remained static, data released by the Government showed on Thursday. The drop in food inflation could provide some much-needed breather to the consumers as well as the policymakers. However, one must wait and see if this is a broader trend or just a temporary relief. Food inflation declined to 9.01% in the week ended November 12 from 10.63% in the preceding week, the Commerce & Industry Ministry said today. Food inflation stood at 11.38% in the corresponding week last year. Inflation in the Primary Articles group also fell to 9.08% in the week under review, from 10.39% in the week ended November 5, according to the Commerce Ministry statement. It was at 15.18% in the year-ago period. Inflation in the Fuel & Power group stood at 15.49% in the week ended November 12, unchanged from the previous week, the Government data showed. It was at 10.57% in the comparable week of the previous year. Inflation in the Non-Food Articles space slid to 4.05% in the week under review from 5.33% in the previous week, the Government data showed. It was at 23.64% in the same period a year earlier. Inflation in the Minerals group rose to 18.51% in the week ended November 12 from 18.02% in the week ended November 5, according to the Commerce Ministry data. Inflation in this group stood at 28.87% in the year-ago period.



On an annual basis, onions turned cheaper by ~33% in the week under consideration, but vegetable prices jumped ~17.6% on an annual basis. Fruits turned costlier by ~4.5% year over year, while Milk prices increased ~10.5% and Egg, Meat & Fish became pricey by ~12% compared to the year-ago period. Potato prices were up ~7.2% on an annual basis while Cereal prices went up by ~3% year over year. Prices of Pulses jumped by ~14.3%. Annual inflation in Rice stood at ~2.75% while Wheat prices fell ~3%. In the Non-Food category, prices of Fibres jumped by ~7.3% year-on-year while that of Oilseeds rose by ~11% from a year ago. In Fuel category, LPG prices are up ~14.3%, petrol by ~29.6% and diesel by ~9.2%. Inflation is expected to moderate if the current easing trend in weekly food and fuel prices continues, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said. "If this trend continues for the next two weeks for the month of November, I hope there will be a moderation in inflation," Mukherjee said.