Data buoys: inflation cools to 4.06%, IIP rises 1%

India’s retail inflation slowed to a 16-month low of 4.06% in January, helped by a sharp deceleration in food prices, while industrial output rebounded to post 1% growth in December aided by increases in electricity and manufacturing. Inflation based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI), which was 4.59% in December, continued to decelerate after being stubbornly stuck above the central bank’s upper tolerance threshold of 6% for six months between June and November. Rural inflation eased last month to 3.23%, while urban inflation stood at 5.1%.