India's Wholesale Inflation Decelerates Further

In the manufactured products segment, it was a mixed bag. While cement and lime prices increased by 8.29 percent, that for sugar, leather products and iron products declined by 4.24 percent, 2.74 percent and 5.98 percent, respectively.

The official data showed that the month-on-month annual inflation has successively decelerated in the past six months -- from 1.66 percent in October 2014 to (-)0.17 percent in November to (-)0.5 percent, (-)0.95 percent, (-)2.06 percent and (-)2.33 percent, respectively, in the next four months.

As per data on consumer price index released on Monday, inflation for March had eased to a three-month low of 5.17 percent, due mainly to a drop in the prices of food articles.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), which has been urged by India Inc to lower interest rates, had observed in its monetary policy update that the favourable effects of a low base year, which had led to a drop in retail inflation, had now dissipated.

"The still elevated levels of prices of protein-rich items such as pulses, meat, fish and milk kept food inflation from following the seasonal decline in prices of vegetables and fruits," the central bank said.
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