<P> <p><p><b>A vendor selling vegetables waits for customers along a roadside market in Srinagar</b> <p><p></P><P> <p><p>Annual food inflation eased for a ninth straight week to its lowest in nearly six years in mid-December on improved supplies, bolstering hopes of a cooling in overall inflation that will allow the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to shift focus to reviving growth by cutting rates. <p><p></P><P> <p><p>Food price index rose 0.42% in the week to December 17 from a year ago, its slowest rise at least since April 2006, as prices of vegetables, potatoes and onions fell by up to 11% on new crop arrivals in markets. <p><p></P><P> <p><p>Annual fuel inflation eased to 14.37% in the latest week from 15.24% a week earlier, government data on Thursday showed. <p><p></P><P> <p><p>(Pictures by Reuters) <p><p></P>