India Inflation Continued to Accelerate in October

By Kimberley Kao

India's consumer-price inflation accelerated in October as food prices continued to rise, adding to price pressures from elevated energy costs and a weak rupee.

The consumer-price index rose 6.09% from a year earlier for the month, compared with a 5.54% increase in September, government data showed Thursday.

The reading was broadly in line with the 6.0% increase expected by economists polled by The Wall Street Journal. Inflation has picked up every month since January.

Food inflation accelerated to 8.94% in October from 7.74% in September.

Disruptions to shipments through the Strait of Hormuz have kept energy costs elevated, adding to inflationary pressures and clouding the growth outlook for India, which relies heavily on imported energy. A weaker rupee adds to the cost of imports priced in dollars.

The Reserve Bank of India raised interest rates in its October meeting for the first time in more than three years as high oil prices and a weak currency fueled inflation.

The central bank ruled out rate cuts in the near term and raised its annual inflation forecast to 5.2% from 5.0%, though it expects economic growth to remain strong.

The rupee has struggled to sustain a recovery after repeatedly hitting record lows this year, partly as investors' retreat from riskier assets drove foreign capital outflows. The dollar last traded 0.4% higher at 94.04 rupees, according to LSEG data.

A recent pullback in oil prices has helped support rupee-denominated assets, said Radhika Rao, senior economist at DBS Group Research.

"Any hardening of the stance in the Middle East conflict that triggers a rebound in oil prices, or a deeper and broader shakeout in the AI trade, would throw a spanner into risk sentiment," Rao said.

Write to Kimberley Kao at kimberley.kao@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 12, 2026 05:58 ET (10:58 GMT)