Nonetheless, economists warned that continued gasoline provide disruptions from conflicts in West Asia are more likely to push up inflation within the electrical energy, gasoline and different fuels, eating places and lodging classes of the buyer worth index in March. |Photograph courtesy: Getty Pictures/iStockphoto
India’s retail inflation accelerated to a 10-month excessive of three.2% in February 2026, pushed by inflation within the meals and tobacco classes, in response to the newest knowledge.
The Client Value Index knowledge launched by the Ministry of Statistics and Program Implementation on Thursday (March 12, 2026) is the second version of a brand new sequence of the index, so historic knowledge by class will not be but obtainable.
Nonetheless, the brand new sequence permits calculation of headline inflation numbers from February 2021 onwards. In keeping with the information, the final time CPI inflation was excessive was in April 2025, when it was 3.3%.
Nonetheless, economists warned that continued gasoline provide disruptions from conflicts in West Asia are more likely to push up inflation within the electrical energy, gasoline and different fuels, eating places and lodging classes of the buyer worth index in March.
Hovering meals costs
“As anticipated, the rise was nearly totally led by the meals and beverage (F&B) sector, which accounted for 44 bps of the headline 47 bps rise in current months (January-February),” mentioned Aditi Nayar, chief economist at ICRA.
He added that core inflation, excluding meals and drinks and electrical energy, gasoline and different fuels, remained unchanged at 3.4% from January to February 2026.
Inflation within the meals and beverage sector was 3.35% in February, up from 2.1% in January. One other class that noticed considerably greater inflation was ‘Paan, Tobacco and Alcohol’, the place inflation accelerated from 2.9% in January to three.5% in February.
Notably, the brand new sequence additionally exhibits that inflation for “private care, social safety, and different items and providers” remained above 19% in each January and February, largely as a consequence of earlier steel worth will increase. In different phrases, the inflation fee on this class accelerated from 19.02% in January to 19.6% in February.
Influence of the West Asian disaster
Madan Sabnavis, chief economist at Financial institution of Baroda, mentioned, “The principle uptick got here from the private care sector the place the inflation fee was 19.6%.” “The relentless rise in silver and gold costs is contributing to this rise.”
He mentioned given international uncertainties, this may proceed to be a stress consider March, and the weaker rupee may even add to this. Nayar additionally famous that this was rolled out in March.
“As a result of international power provide disruptions, greater home (unsubsidized) and business LPG cylinder costs in early March 2026 will put upward stress on inflation within the electrical energy, gasoline and different fuels, restaurant and lodging sectors this month,” Nayar mentioned.
“These, together with the continued rise within the common worth of valuable metals corresponding to gold, will push headline CPI inflation to round 3.3-3.5% in March 2026,” he added.
