Inflation based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) was at 5.1 per cent in January and 6.44 per cent in February 2023.

As per the data released by the National Statistical Office, retail inflation in the food basket was at 8.66 per cent in February, marginally up from 8.3 per cent in the previous month.

The Reserve Bank of India has been tasked by the government to ensure retail inflation remains at 4 per cent with a margin of 2 per cent on either side.

Last month, the central bank projected the CPI inflation at 5.4 per cent for the current fiscal (2023-24) and recorded at 5 per cent in January-March quarter.

Suvodeep Rakshit, senior economist at Kotak Institutional Equities, told Reuters,”February CPI inflation print does not add to any further worries. We expect the inflation trajectory to remain around 4.5%-5% in FY2025, with a sharp base effect led dip to around 3% in the second quarter.”