New Delhi: India's retail inflation rate accelerated to a four-month high of 4.87% in May, government data showed on Tuesday, driven by higher fuel prices and a depreciating rupee.

Analysts polled by Reuters had forecast May's annual increase in the consumer price index at 4.83%, compared with April's provisional 4.58%. The forecasts for May ranged from 4.1% to 5.7%.

May was the seventh straight month in which inflation was higher than the central bank's medium-term target of 4%.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) last week raised its benchmark interest rate for the first time since 2014, by 25 basis points to 6.25%, citing inflation concerns.

The RBI revised up its inflation forecast to 4.7% for the second half of the fiscal year ending in March 2019, from the 4.4% it projected earlier.

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