India's Retail Inflation eases to Six-year low in April 2025

Posted 14 May 2025

2 min read

Recent provisional data released by the Union Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) shows decline of 18 basis points in headline inflation of April, 2025 in comparison to March, 2025.

Key findings

All India Consumer Price Index (CPI) - Combined for the month of April, 2025 over April, 2024 is 3.16%, the lowest year-on-year inflation after July, 2019.
- CPI measures average change in prices paid by consumers over time for a basket of goods and services.
- CPI – Combined aggregates both CPI- Urban and CPI – Rural.
- In India, the CPI is compiled by the National Statistical Office (NSO) under the MoSPI.
  - It is currently calculated using the base year 2012.
Core inflation: Rose slightly to 4.1% but well within the limit of RBI’s inflation target.

Reasons for declined inflation

Easing food prices: The fall in prices has been driven in large part by sharply easing food prices, especially those of vegetables and pulses.
Reduction in non-food item prices: Inflation in the housing category and the pan, tobacco, and intoxicants category saw inflation easing in April, as compared to March.
Rural Inflation: Significant decline in headline and food inflation in the rural sector observed as the headline inflation is 2.92% as compared to 3.25% in March.

Key Terms

Inflation: Inflation is the rate of increase in prices over a given period of time. Inflation is typically a broad measure, such as the overall increase in prices or the increase in the cost of living in a country.
Headline inflation: It reflects changes in the prices of a representative basket of goods and services that households buy, as measured by the consumer price index (CPI). The CPI includes prices for thousands of items, including Fuel and light, Housing, Food and beverages, etc.
Core inflation: It excludes food and fuel items from headline inflation, which are relatively more volatile.