Retail inflation breached the Reserve Bank of India's 4% target in half of India's states and Union Territories in June, highlighting uneven price pressures across the country even as nationwide consumer inflation climbed to a six-month high, official data showed.
India's retail inflation accelerated to 4.38% in June from 3.93% in May, driven largely by rising food prices, higher transport costs and an increase in precious metal prices.
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On a month-on-month basis, consumer prices rose 1.03%, the steepest increase since February 2025, pointing to broad-based inflationary pressures.
Eighteen of the country's 36 states and UTs recorded inflation above the RBI's medium-term target. Telangana topped the list with retail inflation at 6.36%, followed by Andhra Pradesh and Puducherry at 5.39% each.
Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands also reported inflation above 5%.
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Among major states, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Kerala, Jharkhand, Uttarakhand and Gujarat posted inflation above the central bank's target.
In contrast, Mizoram recorded the lowest inflation at 1.63%, followed by Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur and Delhi, all of which remained below 3%.
Nationally, food inflation rose to 5.32% in June from 4.78% in May, remaining the biggest contributor to overall price gains.
Jewellery prices surged 50.2% year-on-year, while transport services and personal transport costs also saw sharp increases.
Ginger and tomatoes led food inflation, while precious metals continued to post steep price gains, with silver jewellery inflation crossing 133%.
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