Economists said the rise in wholesale inflation in May signals there is room for a further surge in consumer prices despite retail inflation easing to a 12-month low of 4.75% last month, especially as food and industrial input prices are spiking globally. Price rise in cereals sped to 9%, while that for pulses reversed direction to hit a six-month high of 22%. “Elevated food inflation at the wholesale level is worrisome as this would keep retail food prices firm even going forward. Retail food inflation has been above 8% for the past seven months,” said the firm’s senior director and principal economist Sunil Kumar and senior analyst Paras Jasrai in a note. India Ratings expects retail food inflation to remain over 8%, with wholesale prices expect to rise further to 3.5%, in June.

Source: The Hindu June 14, 2024 15:46 UTC