Retail inflation rises to 6.95 percent in March

Mumbai: Retail inflation rose to 6.95 percent in March this year from 6.07 percent in preceding month. Inflation based on Consumer Price Index climbed mainly due to rising food and oil prices. As per the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation data released yesterday, the inflation in the food basket was 7.68 percent in March, up from 5.85 percent in February 2022.

Retail inflation in March this year has breached Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) upper tolerance limit of 6 percent for third month in a row. The retail inflation in January



2022 was 6.01 percent. The government has mandated RBI to maintain retail inflation at four percent with a margin of two percent on either side.

RBI considers the retail inflation data for its key rate reviews. On Friday, RBI in its monetary policy review kept the key policy rates unchanged deciding to remain accommodative. However, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das said the withdrawal of accommodation may be considered to ensure that inflation remains within the target while supporting growth.