Retail inflation data: Forecasts in the poll ranged from 5.10 per cent to 5.90 per centThe country's retailinflationheldsteadyinAugust, staying within the central bank's comfort zone for a second month as a moderation in food price rises was offset by continued supply-chain disruptions, aReuterspollpredicted.The Sept.
6-8pollof 41 economists put consumer priceinflationat5.60 per centinAugustfrom a year earlier, little changed from a three-month low of 5.59 per centin July.If confirmed,inflationwould be within the Reserve Bank ofIndia's (RBI) two - six per centcomfort range for a second month.
But it has been above the medium-term target of four per centfor nearly two years."Augustinflationis expected to stabilise around July numbers and drift lower over the remaining months of 2021 on base effects and ebbing food prices," said Radhika Rao, economist at DBS Bank.Forecasts in thepollranged from 5.10 per centto 5.90 per cent - underscoring uncertainty that highinflationis only transitory."The central bank's revised forecasts already accommodate upside risks toinflation, with the outcome unlikelyto influence policy in either direction," added DBS Bank's Rao.Last month, the central bank held its monetary policy loose, but cited concerns aboutinflationary pressures on the economy.In a separateReuterspoll, the RBI - which slashed its key interest rate by a cumulative 115 basis points last year - was expected to keep its policy unchanged until at least April as it prioritises growth overinflation.Despite the devastation of the second wave of the coronavirus,India's economy grew at its fastest ever rate in the June quarter, supported by a low base of a record contraction a year earlier and a strong rebound in manufacturing.The RBI also kept its growth forecast at 9.5 per centfor this fiscal year."With growth on the path of recovery and a moderation in headlineinflation, the stickiness of coreinflationwill become a source of discomfort for MPC members in the coming months despite the demonstrable dovish bias," said Kaushik Das, chief India economist at Deutsche Bank, referring to the RBI's monetary policy committee (MPC).The latestpollalso showed industrial output expanded 10.7 per centin July from a year ago, compared with 13.6 per cent in June.India's infrastructure output - which comprises of eight main industries and accounts for about 40 per cent of total factory production - rose 9.4 per cent in July.