WPI Inflation rises to 3.74% in August

Zee Media Bureau

New Delhi: Wholesale inflation soared to 3.74 percent in August as vegetables, pulses and sugar turned costlier.

The wholesale price-based inflation, reflecting the annual rate of price rise, in July stood at 3.55 percent.

Nonetheless, the annual rate of inflation for some commodities remained rather high: Potatoes (66.72 percent), pulses (34.55 percent) and fruits (13.91 percent). But onion prices were down 64.19 percent in August this year, against the like month of the previous year.

Data released by the Commerce and Industry Ministry further showed that the annual inflation for manufactured products and fuels remained modest at 2.42 percent and 1.62 percent, respectively.

Earlier, data on the consumer price index released on Monday by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) had showed that the annual retail inflation had eased by 100 basis points to 5.05 percent in August.