India's wholesale inflation slows to 0.13% in September
What's the story
India's wholesale inflation, as measured by the Wholesale Price Index (WPI), has slowed to 0.13% in September on a year-on-year basis. The figure is a significant drop from August's 0.52%, according to data released by the Commerce Ministry on Tuesday. The decline is noted alongside a fall in wholesale food inflation by 1.99%.
Inflation drivers
Key highlights of WPI data
The government said that the positive rate of inflation in September was primarily due to an increase in prices of manufacture of food products, other manufacturing, non-food articles, transport equipment, and textiles. Notably, wholesale food inflation fell by 1.99% in September as compared to a growth of 0.21% on an annual basis. In the fuel and power segment, inflation stood at -2.58%, a contraction from August's 3.17%.
Retail figures
Retail inflation eases to 1.5%
Along with wholesale data, the government also released retail inflation figures for September. The rate eased to 1.5% year-on-year, the lowest since June 2017. The decline was largely driven by lower food prices. Notably, this is the second consecutive month that retail inflation has remained below the Reserve Bank of India's target band of 2-6%, following August's 1.6%.