India's retail inflation rises to 4.38% in June on higher food prices

India's retail inflation, measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), rose to 4.38 per cent in June 2026 from 3.93 per cent in May, primarily due to a rise in food prices, according to provisional data released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) on Monday.
According to the official data,food inflation, based on the Consumer Food Price Index (CFPI), also moved higher to 5.32 per cent in June from 4.78 per cent in the previous month. Rural food inflation stood at 5.45 per cent, while urban food inflation was recorded at 5.09 per cent.The latest data showed that overall retail inflation remained higher in rural areas at 4.74 per cent compared with 3.92 per cent in urban India, reflecting relatively stronger price pressures in the countryside.
Among the major components of the Consumer Price Index, inflation in the food and beverages category stood at 5.05 per cent. Restaurants and accommodation services recorded inflation of 6.91 per cent, transport inflation was 4.31 per cent, while education services registered 3.34 per cent.Inflation in the housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels category remained moderate at 1.99 per cent, while health inflation was relatively subdued at 1.42 per cent.
Among individual commodities, silver jewellery recorded the highest annual inflation at 133.21 per cent, followed by ginger at 50.41 per cent, gold, diamond and platinum jewellery at 36.82 per cent, tomato at 31.92 per cent, and raisins (kishmish and monacca) at 20.52 per cent.On the other hand, prices of several items continued to decline during the month. Potato registered the steepest fall with inflation at (-)20.34 per cent, followed by peas at (-)9.67 per cent, motor cars and jeeps at (-)6.89 per cent, cumin (jeera) at (-)3.75 per cent, and motorcycles and scooters at (-)3.49 per cent.
Among major states and Union Territories with a population of over 50 lakh, Telangana recorded the highest combined retail inflation at 6.36 per cent, followed by Andhra Pradesh and Puducherry at 5.39 per cent each, Tamil Nadu at 5.24 per cent, and Odisha at 5.15 per cent.The next Consumer Price Index data for July 2026 is scheduled to be released on August 12, 2026.

(Business Correspondent)