The Hindu Business Line : Stable fuel prices contain inflation

THE annual wholesale price index-based inflation rose 4.4 per cent for the week ended December 31. Cheaper manufactured products and stable fuel prices contained the year-on-year inflation at the previous week's of4.4 per cent, according to data released by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

The Wholesale Price Index (WPI) stood firm at the previous week's level of 196.8 points, while it was at 188.5 points a year ago. Inflation was at 5.72 per cent during the corresponding week a year ago. On a disaggregated basis, the primary articles' group index rose 0.1 per cent to 194.4 points due to increase in prices of food and minerals. The index was at 185.3 points in the year-ago period. The fuel, power, light and lubricants' group index stood firm at the previous week's level of 311.1 points. The index was at 288.2 points a year ago.

The heavy-weighted manufactured products' group index fell 0.1 per cent to 172.1 points due to drop in prices of cement, steel ingots and electric motors.

Among the primary articles' group, the food articles' group index was up 0.1 per cent to 196.5 points as prices rose for urad (four per cent), bajra, barley and wheat (two per cent each) and fish-marine, jowar, eggs, fish-inland, gram and maize (one per cent each), even as vegetables became cheaper by three per cent.

The minerals group index rose 0.2 per cent to 356.6 points due to increase in prices of feldspar, (11 per cent), magnesite (10 per cent), fluorite (four per cent) and manganese ore (two per cent).

Among the manufactured products' group, the food products' group index was up 0.1 per cent to 177 points owing to increase in prices of maida (two per cent) and oil cakes and sooji (one per cent each). But prices declined for coconut oil and rice bran oil (three per cent each) and khandsari, gingelly oil, groundnut oil and ghee (one per cent each).

A five per cent increase in decorative laminates prices pushed up the rubber and plastic products' group index by 0.1 per cent to 140 points. One per cent fall in the prices of liquid chlorine pulled down the chemicals and chemical products' group index by 0.1 per cent to 188.8 points.

A marginal decline in cement prices pulled down the non-metallic mineral products' group index by 0.1 per cent to 168.3 points.

The index for base metals alloys and metal products' group declined 0.1 per cent to 221.4 points owing to one per cent fall in prices of steel ingots and pipes and tubes. The machinery and machine tools' group index declined 0.1 per cent to 146.5 points due to lower prices of electric motors and dry cell (three per cent) while batteries became costlier by one per cent.

The Government revised downward the final inflation figure to 4.04 per cent for the week ended November 5, from a provisional 4.14 per cent, while the WPI stood corrected at 198.3 points as against the earlier estimate of 198.5 points.