New Delhi, Sept. 11 -- Inflationary pressures have eased significantly lately, and evidently more than what economists, markets and even the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) were expecting. The question is whether this easing is a one-off driven by tailwinds or a signal of something deeper and sustainable. The answer lies in what economists call cyclical and structural factors.

year low in July and the first sub-2% reading in more than six years, headline consumer price index (CPI)-based inflation is now even below the lower threshold of RBI's target inflation band.

Notably, looking beyond the headline numbers, there are several more reasons to cheer. The easing of price pressures in recent months has largely been broad-based. While much of ...