Wholesale prices based food inflation marginally came down to 8.96 for the week ended June 4 and is expected to come down further once monsoon effect becomes evident. However, now manufactured product prices assume much more importance, since inflation here is on the upswing, warranting RBI’s action on Thursday.
Food inflation declined from 9.01 per cent a week ago. Barring the previous week, food inflation for the week ended June 4 was two-month high. A year earlier, it stood at 21.08 per cent, which was also responsible for some decline in inflation due to high base effect.
Though marginal, the relaxed food inflation is a relief to the government, which will now have to focus more on inflation in manufacture products.
Milk items turned quite expensive as inflation in these crossed double digits to stand at 10.59 per cent against 8.49 per cent a week ago. Non-vegetarian items like eggs, meat and fish saw the rate of price rise going up at 7.31 per cent from 6.99 per cent. Fruits inflation, though down to 29.92 per cent from 30.78 per cent, was still at an elevated level.
Among other primary (raw) items, mineral prices rose quite a bit. Inflation in minerals doubled to 25.90 per cent from 12.11 per cent.
Fuel and power inflation remained steady at 12.84 per cent.
Overall inflation, in which food has a weight of 14.34 per cent, rose to 9.06 per cent in May from 8.66 per cent in the previous month.