Inflation climbs to 5.48 per cent

New Delhi, Jan 5 (UNI) Higher food and manufactured product prices pushed the annual inflation rate further to 5.48 per cent for the week ended December 23 from 5.43 per cent the previous week.

The inflation rate calculated on a point-to-point basis, stood at 4.62 per cent during the corresponding week of the previous year, according to official figures released here today.

Finance Minister P Chidambaram said the central bank was targeting inflation and cannot allow it to get out of hand.

''RBI is using a mixture of the instruments available to moderate credit growth. Credit is still growing at 30.5 per cent (year-on-year) and that has been so for nearly 20 months now. My concern is credit must grow, but productive sectors must not be starved of credit,'' he said yesterday.

UNI