New Delhi: India’s new Consumer Price Index (CPI) 2024 series has been updated to improve credibility and make it comparable with global inflation standards, according to a report by SBI Research released on Thursday.
The report said the new CPI series follows the COICOP 2018 classification system, which is used internationally to measure consumption patterns and inflation.
This update helps India align its inflation measurement methods with global practices while also reflecting changes in consumption and economic patterns over time.
Lower Weight For Food In Inflation Basket
One of the major changes in the new CPI series is the reduced share of food and beverages in the inflation basket.
Under the earlier CPI 2012 classification, the share of food and beverages would have been 40.10 per cent. However, in the new CPI 2024 series, the weight stands at 36.75 per cent.
Overall, the new CPI basket reduces the weight of food to 40.1 per cent from 45.8 per cent earlier, indicating that spending patterns are gradually shifting away from food towards other services and goods.
The report noted that the new series is useful for inflation forecasting, corporate pricing decisions and economic scenario analysis.
More Items And Wider Market Coverage
The updated CPI series has expanded the number of items used to calculate inflation.
The number of weighted items has increased to 358 items from 299 earlier. The new basket now covers 1,465 rural markets, 1,395 urban markets and 12 online markets.
Several new items have also been added to better reflect modern consumption habits. These include online media and streaming services, rural housing, value-added dairy products, barley, pen drives and external hard disks.
Urbanisation Trends Reflected In Data
The SBI report highlighted that the new CPI series reflects changing urbanisation trends in India.
States such as Telangana, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Haryana have seen the biggest rise in urbanisation weights over the past decade.
Among states, Telangana recorded the highest inflation, partly reflecting economic adjustments after the bifurcation of the erstwhile united Andhra Pradesh.
Meanwhile, most major states recorded inflation below 3 per cent in January 2026, except Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.
Changes In Rural And Urban Weightage
The new CPI structure also changes the importance of several categories in rural and urban areas.
In rural areas, the weight of housing, water, transport, and information and communication has increased.
However, in urban areas, the weight of housing, water, food and beverages has slightly declined in the new CPI series.
