By Siddhi NawarIndia’s Consumer Price Index (CPI)-based inflation for February 2025 stood at 3.61%, marking the lowest year-on-year inflation rate since July 2024. This represents a significant 65 basis points (bps) decline from January’s 4.31%.
India’s Retail Inflation in the month of January stood at 4.31%, the lowest since August 2024, and marking a 91 basis point decline from December’s 5.22%. The drop in prices was led by a sharp decline in food prices, marking a steep fall from the past months, moderating prices for the consumer economy.
A notable drop in both headline and food inflation was observed in the rural sector during February. The All India Consumer Food Price Index (CFPI) also saw a sharp decline, standing at 3.75%, which is 222 bps lower than January 2025. This marks the lowest food inflation level since May 2023.
Urban vs. Rural Inflation Trends
Urban inflation also saw a steady decline, dropping from 3.87% in January to 3.32% in February 2025. Similarly, urban food inflation fell from 5.53% in January to 3.20% in February 2025.However, housing inflation in the urban sector rose slightly, increasing from 2.82% in January to 2.91% in February.
A sharp decline was observed in headline and food inflation in rural sector in February 2025.
Among commodities, coconut oil recorded the highest inflation at 54.48%, followed by coconut at 41.61%, gold at 35.56%, silver at 30.89%, and onion at 30.42%. On the other hand, some items experienced significant price drops, with ginger seeing the steepest decline at -35.81%, followed by jeera (cumin) at -28.77%, tomato at -28.51%, cauliflower at -21.19%, and garlic at -20.32%.
Top States with Highest Inflation Rates
Despite the nationwide decline, some states experienced higher-than-average inflation rates. Kerala recorded the highest inflation at 7.31%, followed by Chhattisgarh at 4.89%, Karnataka at 4.49%, Bihar at 4.47%, and Jammu & Kashmir at 4.28%. These figures represent the states with a population exceeding 50 lakh as per Census 2011.Here is the movement of India’s Consumer Price Index in FY25, so far:
