New Delhi, Oct. 8 -- India's retail inflation likely surged to a 23-month high of 5.6% in September, accelerating from 4.8% the previous month, driven mainly by costlier food items, energy price spillovers and an unfavourable base effect, a Mint poll of 19 economists showed.

Should inflation come in as expected, this would be the first print above 5% since December 2025 and the fourth consecutive month when it will remain above the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI's) medium-term target of 4%. The persistent rise in retail inflation since hitting a historic low of 0.04% in October 2025 prompted the central bank to raise the repo rate by 25 basis points to 5.5% on Wednesday, while signalling further hikes.

Economists polled by Mint projected ...