Dearer milk, fruits and pulses pushed food inflation up to 17.7% for the week ended March 27, from 16.35% reported a week earlier, causing many analysts to fear that persistence of high food inflation could cause a rise in prices of manufactured goods as well.
The overall inflation number for March, data for which is expected next week, is widely expected to cross the double digit mark.
The index for ?food articles? group rose by 0.9% to 287.3 (provisional) from 284.7 for the previous week due to higher prices of fish-marine (4%), jowar and milk (2% each) and fruits & vegetables, masur, bajra and ragi (1% each). However, the prices of condiments & spices and eggs (1% each) declined. The overall inflation, which includes variation in prices of food and non-food items, was 9.89% in February. On an annual basis, pulses became dearer by 32.6%, milk by 21.12%, fruits 14.95% and wheat by 13.34%. On a weekly basis, the index for food articles rose by 0.9% as fish marine, milk, fruits, masur and vegetables became costlier.
A recent FE analysis on prices of essential commodities indicates that expectation of good rabi harvest is likely to aid higher production of pulses, wheat and also some key vegetables. Farmers said winter rains in some major potato and onion growing states has also helped in stabilising the prices. So also is the case in sugar, where prices have come down from a high of almost Rs 47 per kg in many cities a month back to around Rs 34 to Rs 36 per kg, at present.