Food prices may pinch during festive season: Assocham

Prices of food items like sugar and edible oil are expected to further increase during the festive season due to thin stocks and high demand, industry body Assocham said on Tuesday.

It said prices of eight essential commodities like spices, pulses, wheat, sugar, edible oil, tea, coffee and milk have risen by 18 per cent on an average from September 2011 to September 2012.

"Aam Adami is likely to suffer more on account of further price increase in the upcoming festive season due to erratic rainfall and thin stocks coupled with high demand," the chamber said in its study.

While prices of spices, pulses, wheat and sugar have become dearer by 30 per cent, 29 per cent, 19 per cent and 18 per cent, respectively, other essentials like edible oil, tea, coffee and milk saw upward moment in the range of 11 per cent, 10 per cent, 9 per cent and 7

per cent respectively, it said.

The chamber also said the rise in essential commodity prices and per capita income was utterly disproportionate.

As a result of demand due to upcoming festivals, inflation has taken several essentials like spices, edible oil and milk out of the common man's reach, Assocham Secretary General D S Rawat said.

Patchy rainfall in central and southern India at the beginning of monsoon season and heavy rainfall in July in few areas delayed sowing and affected growth of some crops, he added.

Higher prices of sugar, edible oils, vegetables and pulses kept retail inflation near double digit at 9.73 per cent in September.