April is the sixth consecutive month in which the Wholesale Price Index increases year over year. A representative image of the file. | Photo credit: Sushil Kumar Verma
India’s wholesale price inflation rose to a 13-month high of 1.26% in April from 0.53% in March on a rise in food price inflation and a 1.4% year-on-year rise in fuel and energy prices after several months of deflation.
April is the sixth consecutive month in which the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) has risen year-on-year, after seven months of deflation. On a monthly basis, the WPI increased by 0.8%, with the prices of basic goods and food increasing by almost 2% in April and the prices of industrial products by 0.5%.
Read also | Food inflation reached a four-month high of 8.7% in April.
Price increases for staple foods increased from 6.88% in March to a four-month high of 7.74% in April, despite a slight easing in cereals and pulses inflation of 8.7% and 16.6% respectively due to a edged augment in vegetable inflation to 23.6% from 19.5% in March.
Potatoes, onions report rapid inflation
Potatoes and onions saw a edged augment in inflation, reaching 72% and 59.8% respectively from 53% and 57% in March. Rice inflation also gained momentum, exceeding 12%, while egg, meat and fish price increases were 0.9% compared to a 1.86% price decline in March. At the retail level, egg inflation was 7.1%, while meat and fish prices exceeded 8% in April.
The augment in wheat and milk prices slowed down slightly, to 5.7% and 4.3%, respectively, and fruit prices dropped by 1.8% compared to April last year.
The Wholesale Food Index increased by 5.5% compared to 4.65% in March, and the decline in prices of industrial products slowed down to 0.4% in April from 0.8% in the previous month. Staple inflation also rose from 4.5% in March to 5% last month, indicating a broad reversal in wholesale prices.
As many as 11 of the 17 manufactured products tracked by WPI saw prices lower than a year ago, although the decline in edible oil prices in April dropped to 5%, the lowest in many months, from over 8% in March.
Food and beverage prices rose 1.25% and 1.6% respectively, while clothing prices rose 2.34%, the fastest pace in at least six months.
Oil and gas price inflation increased from 4.87% in March to 4.97% in April, while fuel and electricity inflation turned positive after months, and the decline in diesel prices fell to 1.86% from 3.5 % in March.
