Ghar Kharcha: Potato, Onion, Tomato Prices Hurt Household Budgets

Amid a rise in prices in September, vegetable prices appeared to pinch household budgets the most, with limited respite expected in October. According to data published on Monday, India's retail inflation accelerated to 5.5% in September, compared to 3.65% last month.

Food and beverage prices rose to a four-month high of 8.36% in September, compared to a 5.3% rise in August. Vegetable prices led the rise, rising 35.99% year-on-year from 10.7% in August. On a sequential basis, vegetable prices rose by 3.5% from a month ago.

Prices for key vegetables—potatoes, onions, and tomatoes—continued to climb amid rainfall and supply disruptions. On a sequential basis, potatoes and tomatoes saw some easing in prices while onions saw a spike.

Other vegetables too saw a rise, with brinjal, carrots, cabbage, cauliflower, parwal, peas, spinach, and other leafy vegetables recording inflation at over 20%. The rise in vegetables was across the board.

The impact of import duty hikes led to a sequential uptick in edible oil prices, while prices of garlic too saw a rise of over 70% on an annual basis. Pulses prices did provide some relief, easing from previous levels, while remaining elevated.

"Our nowcasting exercise reveals that vegetable prices have remained high in October thus far, which along with a negative base effect should result in an October CPI print between 5.5 and 6.0%,", stated a research note by Kaushik Das, chief India economist at Desutche Bank. "But, with monsoon rains faring better this year compared to the previous year, price pressure is likely to ease from November onwards, as vegetable prices start reverting to the trend'.

When it came to utilities, electricity inflation eased up, while gold and silver prices remained elevated, rising by 20% from a year ago.

Mobile tariff hikes continued to reflect on data, with charges rising by 10.3% in September.