The decline in the rate of wholesale inflation in March is primarily contributed by fall in prices of basic metals, food products, textiles, non-food articles, minerals, rubber & plastic products, crude petroleum & natural gas and paper and paper products.
Headline WPI inflation reading continued its downtrend, coming in at 4.80 per cent, 3.85 per cent and 1.34 per cent in January, February and March respectively.
The rate of inflation based on WPI Food Index slowed from 2.76 per cent in February 2023 to 2.32 per cent in March. For the primary articles segment, the inflation rate eased to 2.40 per cent to 3.28 per cent in the previous month.
A wholesale price index (WPI) measures change in the overall price of goods before they are sold at retail.
India’s CPI-based retail inflation in India eased further to a 16-month low of 5.66 per cent in March as food prices moderated on account of lower vegetable costs, offset in part by surging cereal prices.
India’s retail inflation was above RBI‘s 6 per cent target for three consecutive quarters and had managed to fall back to the RBI’s comfort zone only in November 2022.