The Wholesale Price Index or WPI is the price of products at a wholesale stage or when they are being traded between organizations and have not reached the consumers yet. In India, WPI is used as a measure of inflation.
Now, the WPI inflation rate has been increasing in India for some time. In February 2020 the WPI inflation rate was 2.26%. In October, it had gotten down to 1.48%, and in November 2019, the WPI inflation rate was 0.58%. So, if we compare it from last year, the WPI inflation rate has been increasing, and now, in November 2020, the rate has reached 1.55% according to the data released by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
The year-over-year growth in the WPI inflation rate is because of an increase in the manufacturing costs.
The last months of a year are marked by a lot of festivals, and that increases the production and manufacturing costs in India. As their prices increase, the WPI inflation rate also surges upwards. Analysts had been predicting for the WPI inflation rate to increase by 1.62%.
Analyzing the sub-segments, it is noteworthy that the prices of manufactures products remained high as compared to September. In September, the manufacturing costs were at 2.12%, and in October 2019, they were at -0.84%. However, in November 2020, the prices of manufactured goods raised by 2.97%.
Food Inflation Comes Down From 6.37% To 3.94%
The prices and rates of vegetables, especially potatoes remained on the higher side at 12.24% and 115.2% during November. But overall, the food prices decreased a bit and the food inflation rate that was 6.37% in October was now at 3.94% in November.
Inflation in articles excluding food articles continues to rise in November.
All the articles excluding food articles have a higher inflation rate at 8.43% in November 2020. However, the inflation rate of fuel and power basket was lower at -9.87% in November.
Inflation will remain at a higher level as per the Reserves Bank India’s monetary policy. During the winter season, there may be a slight decline in inflation, but that cannot be said with surety.
On the other hand, the Central Bank of India projected retail inflation based on Consumer Price Index or CPI. In the final quarter of 2020, the retail inflation based on CPI is expected to be at 6.8%.
CPI is a measure to evaluate the weighted average prices of a basket of consumer goods and services. It is calculated by noticing the price changes for each item in the predetermined basket of consumer goods and taking out an average value for them. So, changes in CPI help in assessing the price changes in consumer goods over some time, associated with the living costs.
I’m Ava Paul, an experienced news website author with a special focus on the entertainment section. Over the past five years, I have worked in various positions of media and communication at World Stock Market. My experience has given me extensive knowledge in writing, editing, researching and reporting on stories related to the entertainment industry.
