Indian inflation up
NEW DELHI: Indian inflation crossed six per cent again according to data released on Friday, putting fresh pressure on the central bank to further tighten its monetary policy.
Inflation in Asiaâs fourth-largest economy reached 6.09 per cent in the first week of the current fiscal year beginning April 1 against 5.74 per cent the previous week, the finance ministry said.
The central bank, which has warned of signs of overheating with the economy growing at around nine per cent, has introduced a slew of monetary tightening measures in recent months and will meet next on April 24 to consider further steps.
Last December, inflation broke above the central bankâs target range of 5.0-5.5 per cent.
âWe think the Reserve Bank of India will again take measures to tighten liquidity but it is difficult to predict which instruments they are going to touch,â said D K Joshi, chief economist at Crisil, Indiaâs top credit ratings agency.
âIt may be another rate hike or some sort of tightening on external commercial borrowing,â he said.
Subduing inflation has also become a top priority for the ruling national Congress government which is fighting elections in Indiaâs most populous state Uttar Pradesh.
âTo contain inflation remains a very high priority and my expectation is it will hover around 5.7 per cent next week,â Finance Minister P Chidambaram told reporters in New Delhi.
He also said the timely onset of the monsoon as predicted in farm-dependent India would help bring down prices of cereals.
The surge in the cost of living was cited by analysts as a key factor in defeat of the party in two state elections in February as well as municipal polls in the Indian capital earlier this month.
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