India's Wholesale inflation slips to 8-year low of - 4.12 per cent in June

New Delhi: The deflation in the wholesale price continued for the third month in a row in June, with WPI contracting to a nearly eight-year low at (-) 4.12 per cent on account falling prices of food products, fuel and basic metals, according to official data released on Friday.

The Wholesale Price Index (WPI) based inflation stood at (-) 3.48 per cent in May and at 16.23 per cent in June 2022. The lowest WPI was recorded at (-) 4.76 per cent in October 2015. The decline in WPI is in contrast with June retail inflation which inched up to 4.8 per cent in June from 4.3 per cent in May. "The decline in the rate of inflation in June 2023 is primarily due to fall in prices of mineral oils, food products, basic metals, crude petroleum and natural gas and textiles," the Ministry of Commerce and Industry said in a release.

As per the data, the index for fuel and power contracted by 12.63 per cent in June, primary articles by 2.87 per cent, and manufactured products by 2.71 per cent. The food index shrank by 1.24 per cent. In June, the prices of non-food articles compared to May contracted by 2.40 per cent, crude petroleum and natural gas by 3.01 per cent, and minerals by 4.32 per cent. Also, prices of mineral oils (-2.30 per cent) and electricity (- 2.96 per cent) declined in June on a sequential basis. Regarding manufactured products, the release said 11 groups witnessed a decrease in prices while nine groups saw an increase in prices in June.

The decrease in prices was mainly due to basic metals; chemical and chemical products; textiles; rubber and plastic products; and paper and paper products, among others. Some of the groups that witnessed an increase in prices include tobacco products; computer, electronic and optical products; leather and related products; and motor vehicles.