India’s retail inflation rises to 3.93% in May as food prices accelerate

India's retail inflation, measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), rose to 3.93 per cent in May 2026 from 3.48 per cent in April, driven largely by an increase in food prices, according to provisional data released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) on Friday.The year-on-year inflation rate in rural areas stood at 4.25 per cent, higher than the urban inflation rate of 3.53 per cent. The all-India CPI (Combined) index for May was recorded at 105.91.
Food inflation also moved higher during the month. The Consumer Food Price Index (CFPI)-based inflation rose to 4.78 per cent in May from 4.20 per cent in April. Rural food inflation was estimated at 4.85 per cent, while urban food inflation stood at 4.66 per cent. The combined CFPI index was placed at 105.35.Among major expenditure categories, food and beverages recorded inflation of 4.55 per cent. Restaurants and accommodation services witnessed inflation of 5.75 per cent. Personal care, social protection and miscellaneous goods and services registered the highest inflation among major divisions at 18.46 per cent.Education inflation stood at 2.99 per cent, while health-related inflation was recorded at 1.49 per cent during the month.Housing inflation remained relatively moderate at 2.12 per cent in May. The corresponding rates were 2.73 per cent in rural areas and 1.91 per cent in urban centres.
Government data showed sharp price increases in several commodities. Silver jewellery recorded the highest inflation at 155.23 per cent, followed by tomato at 48.43 per cent. Inflation in gold, diamond and platinum jewellery stood at 40.93 per cent, while ginger prices rose 32.49 per cent. Raisins and monacca registered inflation of 21.97 per cent.On the other hand, some items continued to witness price declines. Potato prices remained in deflation territory with inflation at minus 23.71 per cent. Peas recorded negative inflation of 11.47 per cent. Prices of motor cars and jeeps, cumin (jeera), and motorcycles and scooters also declined compared with the corresponding period last year.
Among states and Union Territories with populations exceeding 50 lakh, Telangana recorded the highest combined inflation rate at 6.15 per cent. Tamil Nadu followed with 5.11 per cent, while Puducherry and Andhra Pradesh recorded inflation rates of 5.00 per cent and 4.90 per cent, respectively.The National Statistical Office (NSO) said price data for the index was collected from 1,407 urban markets, including online platforms, and 1,465 villages across the country. The response rate during May was 100 per cent in both rural and urban markets.The Ministry said CPI inflation data for June 2026 will be released on July 13, 2026,according to information.

(Business Correspondent)