India’s wholesale inflation rate declined marginally to 15.18% in June from the three-decade high of 15.88% in May, government data showed on Thursday.
The indicator of price rise in wholesale markets has remained in double digits since April last year. In June last year, the wholesale inflation rate was 12.07%.
“The high rate of inflation in June 2022 is primarily due to a rise in prices of mineral oils, food articles, crude petroleum and natural gas, basic metals, chemicals and chemical products, food products etc. as compared to the corresponding month of the previous year,” the Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry said in a statement.
Wholesale inflation in food articles increased from 12.34% in May to 14.39% in June, the ministry said.
In the fuel and power basket, wholesale inflation was at 40.38% in June. It was 40.62% in May and 38.66% in April.
In the manufactured products section, the wholesale inflation lowered from 10.11% in May to 9.19% in June.
The marginal fall in wholesale inflation in May came a day after India’s retail inflation eased to 7.01% in June from 7.04% in May. In April, retail inflation had shot up to 7.79% – the highest in eight years.
Despite the decline in the inflation numbers, the price rise indicator remained above the upper limit of the Reserve Bank of India’s prescribed range for the sixth straight month. The central bank aims to keep retail inflation in the range of 2% to 6%.
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