New Delhi: The annual wholesale price index- (WPI)
based inflation fell to a 33-week low of 5.42 per cent
during the week ended January 15, from 5.6 per cent in
the previous week.
The
fall in the point-to-point inflation index was mainly
on account of a dip in prices of essential items like
vegetables, fruits, tea, edible oil and naphtha.
During
the latest recorded week, the WPI remained unchanged at
the previous week''s level of 188.6. The ''primary articles''
index declined to 185.5 points during the week, from 185.9
in the previous week as prices for food items dipped by
0.3 per cent and for non-food items by 0.1 per cent.
The
''manufactured products'' index rose by 0.1 per cent to
167.5 points, due to costlier food products, non-metallic
minerals, basic metals and machinery, though prices fell
for textiles, chemicals and transport parts.
The
''index for fuel, power, light and lubricants group'' dipped
marginally to 288 due to a 1 per cent fall in naphtha
prices, although furnace oil became costlier by 1 per
cent.
Among
the ''primary articles'', the index for food articles dipped
to 183.9 due to lower prices of tea (4 per cent), eggs
and vegetables (3 per cent), arhar, fruits, jowar,
ragi, moong, condiments and spices (1 per cent each).
Prices
of bajra, barley, urad and gram rose by
1 per cent. The ''non-food articles'' group index fell marginally
to 182.1 owing to lower prices of raw silk (5 per cent),
copra, rape and mustard seeds, fodder and raw cotton
(1 per cent each). However, safflower was costlier by
2 per cent, while raw tobacco and sunflower rose by 1
per cent each.
In
case of the ''manufactured products group'', the ''food products''
index rose by 0.2 per cent to 177.5 due to higher prices
of sugar, oil cakes (1 per cent each).
The
''textiles group'' index declined by 0.2 per cent to 133
due to lower prices of polyester staple fibre (two per
cent) and other cotton yarn (one per cent). The index
for chemicals and chemical products'' fell by 0.1 per cent
to 183.3 owing to lower prices of PVC resins and purified
terephthalic acid (8 per cent each). But prices rose for
endosulfan (2 per cent) and monocrotophos (1 per cent).
Cement
prices increased marginally pushing up non-metallic mineral
products'' group index by 0.1 per cent to 156.6. The basic
metals alloys and metal products'' index rose marginally
to 206.5 due to rise in prices of aluminium extrusion
and steel sheets, plates and strips (3 per cent each).
The machinery and machine tools'' index rose by 0.1 per
cent to 142.6 points due to higher prices of enamelled
copper wires and electric motors (4 per cent each). A
one
per cent fall in prices of other automobile spare parts
pushed down the transport equipment and parts group index
to 155.6.
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