New Delhi: Wholesale price-based inflation eased to a 29-month low of 1.34 per cent in March as prices of manufactured products and fuel eased, even as food articles became costlier.
March is the 10th consecutive month when Wholesale Price Index (WPI) based inflation declined.
The inflation rate was 3.85 percent in February and 14.63 percent in March 2022.
However, inflation in food articles rose to 5.48 per cent in March from 3.81 per cent in February.
“The decline in inflation rate in March 2023 is mainly contributed by decline in prices of basic metals, food products, textiles, non-food articles, minerals, rubber and plastic products, crude petroleum and natural gas and paper and paper products. ” Ministry of Commerce and Industry said on Monday.
Inflation in wheat and pulses was 9.16 per cent and 3.03 per cent, respectively, while it was (-) 2.22 per cent in vegetables. Inflation in oilseeds was (-)15.05 per cent in March 2023.
Fuel and power basket inflation eased to 8.96 per cent last month from 14.82 per cent in February. In manufactured products, inflation was (-)0.77 per cent as against 1.94 per cent.
The decline in WPI is in line with the decline in March retail inflation.
Retail inflation based on the Consumer Price Index declined to a 15-month low of 5.66 per cent in March from 6.44 per cent in February.
In its monetary policy review earlier this month, the RBI cautioned that adverse climatic conditions pose a risk to future inflation momentum and that milk prices firmed up in the summer due to tight demand-supply conditions and feed cost pressures predicted to live.
The central bank also put on hold interest rate hike by keeping the benchmark rate unchanged at 6.50 per cent. It has projected retail inflation to average 5.2 per cent in the current fiscal.