WPI food price inflation falls to 12-month low in November
14 Dec 2011
Headline inflation for November moderated at 9.11 per cent against 9.73 per cent in the previous month, thanks mainly to cheaper onions, potatoes and milk.
Inflation as measured by the Wholesale Price Index was a considerably lower 8.2 per cent in November last year.
The news however is, like the curate's egg, 'only good in parts' as industrial production continues to decline, with the rupee slumping to an all-time low against the dollar.
The Reserve Bank of India's monetary policy review, to be released on Friday, will now be all the more keenly watched. The central bank has been hiking interest rates since March 2010 in attempts to curb inflation, but in the last review, the RBI had indicated it may not hike the rates in December.
According to the data released today, inflation in food articles dipped to 8.54 per cent in November from 10.14 per cent in the same month last year. The rate of price rise in food items stood at 14.64 per cent in October 2011.
On an annual basis, the rate of price rise in the primary articles segment also dropped to 8.53 per cent in November from 14.67 per cent in the same month last year. Inflation in the segment stood at 18.09 per cent in October 2011.
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