-PTI/ Financial Express Downtrading refers to the practice of switching from expensive products to cheaper alternatives by customers in a bid to conserve cash. FMCG manufacturers are opting to reduce product weight rather than price of items targeted at lower-end consumers, while resorting to single-digit price increase on some large packs and launching ‘bridge packs’, as they seek to overcome the impact of commodity price rise and unprecedented inflation. Besides, they are also...

-The Hindu Extension of procurement season to benefit farmers, it says The Centre has asked wheat-producing States and union territories (UTs), whose procurement closing dates were expiring early, to keep procuring wheat till May 31, the Ministry of consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution said in a statement on May 15. The extension of the wheat procurement season was “expected to benefit farmers”, the Ministry said. The Ministry had also directed the Food...

-Livemint.com The political economy favours the government taking tough measures to protect the consumers — more numerous and more vocal than producers — even if these measures go against the grain of economic sense. India’s decision to restrict wheat export is disappointing but not a big surprise. Banning exports has been the government’s standard response to any shortage of agricultural commodities, denying farmers the benefit of global prices when these are high....

-The New Indian Express But interestingly the procurement in both states is over. CHANDIGARH: The Centre has allowed relaxation in procurement norms for shrivelled wheat grains up to 18 per cent against the earlier specification of 6 per cent with any value cut for the central pool from both Punjab and Haryana. This, due to the abnormally high temperatures. A letter written on Friday by Vishwajeet Haldar, Deputy Commissioner (Storage and Research Division) in...

-The Hindu Business Line Experts attribute it to higher cost of providing goods and services and more money under schemes Retail inflation based on consumer Price Index (CPI) for rural areas is higher than urban areas for four successive months with West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana and Haryana recording double-digit rural retail inflation in April. These are among the 17 States that witnessed higher retail inflation in rural areas. However, in Karnataka, Kerala,...