The Hindu Business Line : Inflation up 3.53 pc due to higher fuel, food prices

THE annual wholesale price index-based inflation rose 3.53 per cent during the 12 months ending September 27, accelerating from the previous week's annual rise of 3.16 per cent.

The rise in the year-on-year inflation was largely on account of higher fuel and food prices, according to data released here today by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

The WPI was up at 196.4 points, from 189.7 points during the corresponding period a year ago, even as prices fell marginally for manufactured items. The inflation rate was at 8.15 per cent during the corresponding week of the previous year.

On a disaggregated basis, the primary articles' group index rose 0.4 per cent to 195.4 points owing to costlier food products. The index was 194.1 points during the same period a year ago. The fuel, power, light and lubricants group index shot up 1.8 per cent to 313.9 points owing to costlier petrol (8 per cent), high speed diesel oil and light diesel oil (7 per cent each). The index stood at 282 points a year ago.

Among the primary articles' group, the index for the food products' group was up by 0.5 per cent to 198.6 points due to higher prices of eggs and fruits and vegetables (2 per cent each) and fish marine, ragi, gram and fish-inland (1 per cent each).

Among the manufactured products' group index, the food products' group index was up 0.1 per cent to 177.1 points due to higher prices of gur (3 per cent) and oil cakes and rape and mustard oil (1 per cent). Prices, however, declined for melted food (3 per cent), sunflower oil and coconut oil (2 per cent each) and imported edible oil and khandsari (1 per cent each).

The index for chemicals and chemical products' group was down 0.1 per cent to 186.5 points due to lower prices of benzene (9 per cent), synthetic resins (4 per cent), resins (3 per cent) and acid (1 per cent). But prices moved up for epoxy resins (16 per cent), PVC resins (7 per cent) and purified terephthalic acid (5 per cent).

The basic metals alloys and metal products' group index declined marginally to 221 points due to lower prices of alloy stainless steel (5 per cent) and alloy steel casting (1 per cent).

A 1-per cent drop in motorcycles prices pushed down the transport equipment and parts' group index by 0.1 per cent to 159.2 points.

The Government also revised upward the final inflation figure for the week ended July 16 to 4.45 per cent, from the provisional 4.18 per cent, while the WPI stood corrected at 194.9 points, against the earlier estimate of 194.4 points.

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page

Stories in this Section
Turnover-based fee for commodity brokers likely

Vizag fishermen rally to protect livelihood

The knowledge revolution still eludes the Indian farmer

Inflation up 3.53 pc due to higher fuel, food prices

Rubber unchanged in dull trading

Shree Renuka Sugars registered as CDM project

Edible oils turn bearish on imports, better crop

SEA call to raise customs duty on vanaspati imports