India’s CPI Inflation Hits 2-Year High Of 6.09% In October, Breaches RBI’s Upper Tolerance Limit

Last Updated:November 12, 2026, 4:27 pm IST

Food inflation, measured by the All India Consumer Food Price Index, also accelerates to 8.94 per cent in October 2026, compared with 7.74 per cent in September 2026.

CPI Inflation In October 2026.

CPI Inflation For October 2026: India’s retail inflation rose to a two-year high of 6.09 per cent in October 2026, breaching the Reserve Bank of India’s upper tolerance limit of 6 per cent, according to government data released on Thursday. This marks the 12th consecutive monthly increase in CPI inflation.

“Year-on-year inflation rate based on the All India Consumer Price Index (CPI) with base year 2024 for the month of October, 2026 over October, 2025 is 6.09% (Provisional). Corresponding inflation rates for rural and urban are 6.63% and 5.41%, respectively,” the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation said in a statement on Thursday.

CPI inflation stood at 5.54 per cent in September 2026 and 0.25 per cent in October 2025.

The RBI has a CPI inflation target of 4 per cent, with a tolerance band of 2-6 per cent.

Food inflation, measured by the All India Consumer Food Price Index (CFPI), also accelerated to 8.94 per cent in October 2026, compared with 7.74 per cent in September 2026.

Rural and urban food inflation stood at 9.09 per cent and 8.68 per cent, respectively, in October.

Upasna Bhardwaj, chief economist at Kotak Mahindra Bank said, “The October 2026 headline expectedly came in higher than 6%. We expect the next few readings to remain elevated above 6% amid adverse base effect from GST, higher food prices and partial pass-through of higher commodity prices. We continue to expect the RBI to hike rates by additional 50 bp in FY27, with further upside risks likely if food inflation flares up significantly and/or benign oil prices reverse trajectory.”

The October reading will be the last inflation data available to the RBI before its December 4 monetary policy decision. The central bank has projected inflation at 6% for the third quarter of 2026-27.

India revised the base year for its Consumer Price Index (CPI) from 2012 to 2024 on February 12, 2026, updating the basket of goods and services to better reflect changing household consumption patterns.

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What was India’s retail inflation rate in October 2026?

India’s retail CPI inflation rose to 6.09 per cent in October 2026, marking the 12th consecutive monthly increase and breaching the Reserve Bank of India’s upper tolerance limit of 6 per cent.

How much was the food inflation rate in October 2026?

The All India Consumer Food Price Index (CFPI) accelerated to 8.94 per cent in October 2026, up from 7.74 per cent in September 2026.

What are economists expecting from the RBI regarding future interest rates?

Economists like Upasna Bhardwaj from Kotak Mahindra Bank expect the RBI to hike interest rates by an additional 50 basis points in FY27, with further upside risks if food inflation and commodity prices flare up.

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First Published:

November 12, 2026, 4:09 PM IST

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