February wholesale price inflation rises sharply to 39-month high of 6.55%

New Delhi: India`s annual rate of inflation based on wholesale prices rose sharply to 39-month high of 6.55 percent in February, from 5.25 percent in the previous month, government data showed on Tuesday.

According to the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) data released by the Commerce and Industry Ministry, the annual inflation rate was (-)0.85 percent in February 2016.

In January, prices rose a provisional 5.25 percent, the fastest pace in two-and-a-half years. Last month, wholesale food prices rose 2.69 percent year-on-year, compared with a provisional 0.56 percent fall in January.

The Wholesale Price Index for  'All Commodities' for the month of February 2017 rose by  0.5 percent to 185.5 (provisional) from 184.6 (provisional) for the previous month.

The Primary Articles Inflation stood at 0.9 percent to 258.1 (provisional) from 255.7 (provisional) for the previous month. The index for  ‘Food Articles’ group rose by 0.1 percent while that of the ‘Non-Food Articles’  group rose by 1.5 percent.

According to the official data released today, food prices witnessed a sharp rise by 2.69 percent in February as compared to a deceleration by 0.56 percent in the previous month.

This was primarily because of sharp rise in rates of cereals, rice and fruits. The fuel basket also surged by 21.02 percent from 18.14 percent in January.

With Agency Inputs