Retail inflation moved up for the fifth consecutive month to 10.91 per cent in February on account of higher prices of vegetables, edible oil, cereals and protein-based items.
This is the third month in a row that inflation figures are in the double-digit terrain.
Retail inflation was 10.79 per cent in January, 10.56 per cent in December 2012 and 9.90 per cent in November 2012.
According to the data released on Tuesday, the vegetables basket in February recorded
the highest inflation of 21.29 per cent among all the constituents that make the Consumer Price Index (CPI).
That was followed by cereals wherein inflation was 17.04 per cent. Egg, meat and fish became costlier by 15.72 per cent during the month. Inflation in oils and fats segment stood at 14.56 per cent.
Besides, pulses became dearer by 12.39 per cent and sugar turned more expensive by 12.10 per cent on an annual basis.
Clothing and footwear witnessed 10.87 per cent increase in prices during the month.
In urban areas, retail inflation rose to 10.84 per cent in February from 10.73 per cent in the previous month. The CPI for rural population increased to 11.01 per cent during the month from 10.88 per cent in January.
The data for wholesale price index (WPI)-based inflation is expected on Thursday. The WPI figures for January stood at 6.62 per cent, much higher than RBI's comfort level of 5-6 per cent.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is scheduled to announce mid-quarter
review of monetary policy on March 19. It is widely expected that the central bank will further ease the policy to boost economic growth, which touched a decade low of 4.5 per cent in the third quarter of the current financial year.
RBI has forecast
the March-end WPI inflation to be 6.8 per cent.
Meanwhile, industrial output growth rate grew by 2.4 per cent in January, compared to a growth of 1 per cent in same month last year.
With inputs from IANS
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