Factory output decelerates in November, retail inflation spikes in December

Rising pricing pressure in clothing and footwear (8.3%) and fuel group (10.95%) contributed to the rise in retail inflation while food prices rose to 4.05%

In a double whammy for the economy, India’s retail inflation rate shot up to a five-month high in December and industrial output growth decelerated to a nine-month low in November, signalling that economic recovery remains fragile.

The final set of macroeconomic indicators before the February 1 Budget may convince Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman that the government would need to continue doing the heavy lifting through higher spending to support growth momentum.

The data released by the statistics department showed that the retail inflation rate, as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), surged to 5.59 per cent in December from 4.91 per