India’s wholesale inflation rate surged to 3.36% in June, up from 2.61% in May, according to data released by the Commerce Ministry on Monday. The increase, measured by the Wholesale Price Index (WPI), was primarily driven by rising food and energy prices.
The increase is largely due to higher prices in various categories including food articles, manufacture of food products, crude petroleum & natural gas, mineral oils, and other manufacturing sectors.
The WPI for all commodities rose from 153.3 in May to 153.9 in June, reflecting broad-based price increases across various sectors. Food articles saw a significant jump, with the food index climbing from 185.7 to 190.3, pushing the annual food inflation rate from 7.40% to 8.68%.
Primary articles, which include agricultural products and minerals, saw their index rise to 191.6, resulting in an inflation rate of 8.80% for this category. Manufactured products, the largest component of the WPI, also experienced an uptick, with its index reaching 141.9 and inflation rate hitting 1.43%.
Despite the overall increase, the fuel and power index actually decreased from 150.6 to 147.7, with its inflation rate slightly declining to 1.03%.
Notable increases were seen in food products, chemicals, textiles, rubber & plastics products, and motor vehicles. Decreases were observed in basic metals, non-metallic mineral products, and pharmaceuticals, among others, read the press release.
Aditi Nayar, Chief Economist at ICRA Ltd., commented on the data, saying, “The jump in the WPI inflation to 3.4 per cent in June 2024 was broad-based, and along expected lines, displaying the third consecutive month of a sizeable sequential step up (+0.3 per cent in March 2024, +1.2 per cent in April 2024 and +2.6 per cent in May 2024). Looking ahead, the headline WPI inflation is expected to dip to ~2.0 per cent in July 2024, driven by a favourable base, as well as some cooling in global commodity prices.”
The WPI data for June was compiled with a weighted response rate of 87.8%. The Ministry noted that these figures are provisional and subject to revision. The next WPI release, for July 2024, is scheduled for August 14.
(Inputs from ANI)
