Significantly, non-food manufactured products inflation, an indicator of demand side pressure, rose sharply from 4.8% in January to 6% in February and continues to stay well above its medium-term trend.
And if Andrew Strauss's men needed any further indicator of Ricky Ponting side's decline, the two defeats in India followed their defeat by Pakistan at Headingley, making it the first time Australia have lost three Tests in a row since 1988-89.