India’s Retail Inflation Hits Over One-Year High of 3.48% in April

India’s retail inflation rose to a more than one-year high of 3.48 per cent in April from 3.40 per cent in March, driven mainly by higher food prices, according to data released by the Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation on Monday. Food inflation, measured by the Consumer Food Price Index (CFPI), also accelerated to 4.20 per cent in April from 3.87 per cent last month, indicating broader price pressures across household essentials. Meanwhile, inflation in rural areas stood at 3.74 per cent, higher than the 3.16 per cent recorded in urban India. Among key items, silver jewellery recorded the sharpest inflation at 144.34 per cent in April, though slightly lower than 148.42 per cent in March. Gold, diamond and platinum jewellery inflation also remained elevated at 40.72 per cent. Among key food items, tomato prices surged 35.28 per cent year-on-year in April, while potato and onion prices remained in deflation at minus 23.69 per cent and minus 17.67 per cent, respectively. The personal care and miscellaneous goods category recorded the sharpest inflation at 17.66 per cent, while transport inflation remained largely flat at minus 0.01 per cent. India’s retail inflation has now risen for the second consecutive month, inching closer to the Reserve Bank of India’s 4 per cent medium-term target. The RBI last month projected CPI inflation for 2026-27 at 4.6 per cent and warned that elevated global energy prices due to the Middle East conflict, along with possible El Niño conditions affecting the monsoon, could pose upside risks to inflation.