Rural inflation rises to 7.6% in September, low demands for entry-level products

India's rural markets and the mass entry level segment is hurting across categories. Rising prices of everything from food to daily essentials and even fuel is pinching the wallets of rural households.

Inflation is biting rural India harder than the cities. The latest consumer price inflation data shows rural India continued to see steeper inflation in September at 7.56 percent as against 7.27 percent in urban areas, and an overall retail inflation of 7.41 percent.

Experts are now keenly watching the festive season for signs of a recovery in demand. With some commodity prices too showing some signs of easing, experts say there could be a recovery in the second half of this fiscal. According to Morgan Stanley, rural demand is set to rebound, helped by wider reopening, improving labour market conditions, and improving terms of trade for the rural sector.