Food inflation ebbs to 10.39% for week ending on February 19

Food inflation declined by more than one percentage point to 10.39% for the week that ended on February 19, led by a decline in prices of onions, potatoes and pulses.However, prices of fruit, milk and vegetables as a group continued to remain high.Food inflation stood at 11.49% in the previous reporting week and 21.62% in the corresponding period a year ago.According to data released by the government, prices of potatoes declined by 12.66% year-on-year, while pulses fell by 5.02%, onions by 3.64% and wheat by 2.06%.The items that became dearer during the week ended February 19 vis-a-vis the corresponding year-ago period were fruits (up 16.34%), egg, meat and fish (14.5%), vegetables (14.29%) and milk (11.07%).The declining prices of certain food items will have a favourable impact on headline inflation in February.General inflation stood at 8.23% in January, much above the comfort level of 5-6%.