Inflation rises to 4.82%

The wholesale price-based inflation shot up to 4.82 per cent during the week ended August 5 as compared to 4.61 per cent in the previous week, despite a decline in prices of essential items including fruits and vegetables.

However, some manufactured products became dearer, as did aviation turbine fuel. This was in reverse of the trend when manufactured goods' prices softened or remained more or less stable and prices of essential items rose, increasing inflation above 5 per cent in June.

In fact, the index for food articles group declined by 0.3 per cent to 203.7 points. Prices of jowar fell by 3 per cent, while fruits and vegetables became cheaper by 2 per cent each.

However, prices of gram, maize, pork, eggs and fish-inland moved up by one per cent each.

In manufactured goods as well, prices of essential items rose with the index for food products rising by 0.2 per cent at 181 points. Prices of gur and rice bran oil rose by 3 per cent each, imported edible oil by 2 per cent and groundnut oil, sooji, atta, maida and khandsari by one per cent each.

Yesterday, economic think-tank National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER) raised its forecast for average wholesale price index-based inflation to 4.6 per cent for the current fiscal from the earlier assessment of 4.3 per cent.

However, its revised estimates is mainly based on volatile international crude oil prices, full impact of which has not yet been passed on to the domestic customers.

If petroleum prices are further revised, the PM's Economic Advisory Council has predicted inflation to be around 5.5 per cent at the end of this fiscal compared to 4.1 per cent last financial year.

In fuel, power, light and lubricants category, ATF and furnace oil became costlier by 3 per cent each during the week ended August 5.