Inflation at the wholesale level accelerated to 3.59% in October, a six-month high, on the back of quickening food price inflation and firming oil prices, according to official data released by the Ministry of Commerce on Tuesday.
The Wholesale Price Index had, in comparison, registered a growth of 2.6% in September.
Within the Index, the primary articles segment saw inflation quickening to 3.33% in October from 0.15% in September.
This was mostly driven by food and fuel prices. The food articles segment saw inflation at 4.3% in October, climbing from 2.04% in the previous month. The fuel segment saw a much slower contraction in prices in October, of 2.1%, compared with a contraction of 11.55% in September.
The food index — which is a composite of the food segment within primary articles, and the manufactured food category — saw inflation accelerating to 3.23% in October from 2.99% in September.
Vegetables — stress point
“Both wholesale and retail prices edged up in the month of October,” Pankaj Patel, president, FICCI, said in a written statement.
“The increase was led by firming up of food prices with the vegetables segment remaining a key stress point at this juncture. However, this is due to adverse weather conditions and the situation should ease out in the coming months.”
The minerals segment also saw inflation quickening sharply to 14.8% compared with a contraction of 7.08% in September.
The fuel (coal and mineral oils) and power segment saw inflation accelerating to 10.5% in October from 9.01% in September. Manufacturing inflation, however, slowed marginally to 2.62% from 2.72% over the same period.
The uptick in wholesale inflation accompanies a similar quickening in inflation as measured by the Consumer Price Index as well. Retail inflation quickened to 3.58% in October on the back of rising vegetable and crude oil prices from 3.28% in September.
