Wholesale Inflation Quickens To 2.03% In January From 1.22% In December

The wholesale price index (WPI) inflation rose sharply to 2.03 per cent in January compared with 1.22 per cent in December on the back of higher fuel prices, data released by Ministry of Commerce & Industry showed. "The rate of inflation, based on monthly WPI, stood at (2.03 per cent) (provisional) for the month of January, 2021 (over January, 2020) as compared to 3.52 per cent during the corresponding month of the previous year," the Ministry of Commerce & Industry said in a statement.

The government, meanwhile, revised the WPI inflation for December to 2.29 per cent from the provisional figure of 2.76 per cent.

The index of primary articles declined by 1.77 per cent, while prices of crude petroleum & natural gas increased by 9.48 per cent and minerals by 2.67 per cent in January 2021 compared to December, 2020, Ministry of Commerce said.

The index of fuel & power group increased by 5.84 per cent and manufactured products index increased by 1.54 per cent.

Rate of inflation based on WPI Food Index contracted by 0.26 per cent from growth of 0.92 per cent in December.

Meanwhile, data released on Friday had showed that retail inflation based on consumer price index (CPI) eased to 4.06 per cent in January 2021 from 4.59 per cent in December 2020, amid a sharp decline in food prices.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) tracks the retail inflation - or the rate of increase in consumer prices as determined by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) - primarily for making changes to its monetary policy. The central bank held its policy rates steady at its last monetary policy meeting on February 5 with an accommodative stance, stating that inflation was expected to remain within the targeted range over the next few quarters.