India’s wholesale price index (WPI)-based inflation for the month of July eased to 2.04 per cent on an annual basis primarily due to increase in prices of food articles, manufacture of food products, mineral oils, crude petroleum & natural gas, other manufacturing, etc., showed the provisional data released by the Ministry of Commerce & Industry on Wednesday. In June, WPI inflation was at a 16-month high of 3.36 per cent, driven by costlier food items.
“Positive rate of inflation in July 2024 is primarily due to increase in prices of food articles, manufacture of food products, mineral oils, crude petroleum & natural gas, other manufacturing, etc.,” Ministry of Commerce & Industry said in a statement.
The month over month change in WPI index for the month of July 2024 stood at 0.84 per cent as compared to June 2024. The rate of inflation based on WPI Food Index increased from 8.68 per cent in June 2024 to 3.55 per cent in July 2024, the data showed.
Per the release, inflation for food articles stood at 3.45 per cent in July as compared to 10.87 in June. The inflation rate for the primary articles came in at 3.08 per cent from 8.80 per cent in June. The fuel and power inflation was at 1.72 per cent in July as against 1.03 per cent in June. And manufactured products inflation stood at 1.58 per cent in July.
Under the food articles category, vegetable inflation was recorded at -8.93 per cent in July from 38.76 per cent in June. Pulses inflation during the month of June was at 20.27 per cent as against 21.64 per cent in June, while the inflation for wheat came in at 7.00 per cent from 6.25 per cent in June. Cereals inflation was at 8.96 per cent. Eggs, Meat & Fish inflation came in at -1.59 per cent in July. Potato and onion reported inflation at 76.23 per cent and 88.77 per cent respectively.
The non-food articles reported WPI inflation at -2.90 per cent. Minerals inflation was at 6.59 per cent and Crude Petroleum & Natural gas posted wholesale inflation at 9.12 per cent in July, and crude petroleum was at 9.19 per cent.
Reacting on the WPI inflation, Rahul Agrawal, Senior Economist, ICRA Ltd, said, “The WPI inflation expectedly eased to 2.0 per cent in July 2024 from 3.4 per cent in June 2024 aided by a favourable base, while printing marginally lower than ICRA’s estimate for the month (+2.1 per cent).”
“The near-term outlook for WPI inflation remains benign. As per the data released by the Department of Consumer Affairs, the prices of a majority of food items have dipped on a sequential basis in August 2024 so far, amid a pick-up in the monsoon and a healthy progression in kharif sowing. This is likely to aid in containing the base effect-led uptick in the primary food articles inflation print in the ongoing month,” he added while maintaining that ICRA expects WPI inflation to remain unchanged at around 2.0 per cent in August 2024.