Mumbai: The annual rate of inflation based on the wholesale price index held steady at 4.27 per cent for the week ended July 7, matching the annual rise of the previous week.

Inflation rose in the last two weeks of June after hitting a 14-month low of 4.03 per cent in mid-June, but it is well below a two-year high of 6.69 per cent hit in late January.

Vegetable prices continued to rise after rains across the country disrupted their supply. Vegetables became costlier by 4.4 per cent this time.

Wholesale Price Index, on which inflation data is based, rose by 0.05 per cent to 212.6 per cent during the week compared to 212.5 per cent in the previous week.

Among food items, prices of fruits fell by 16.8 per cent, poultry chicken by five per cent, moong by two per cent, masur and bajra by one per cent each.

However, vegetables got dearer by 4.4 per cent, jowar and fish-marine by seven per cent, condiments and spices by four per cent. Prices of wheat, arhar and maize moved up by one per cent each.

Elsewhere, sunflower prices shot up by nine per cent, raw cotton and groundnut seed by three per cent, while that of mustard seed declined by one per cent.

During the week, prices of aviation turbine fuel and furnace oil moved up by two per cent.

Among manufactured products, bran (all kinds) and coconut oil prices declined by one per cent each, while sunflower oil went expensive by four per cent.

Groundnut oil became costlier by three per cent, while prices of imported edible oil, rice bran oil and sugar got costlier by one per cent.

Metal products like lead ingots, other aluminium material, foundry and basic pig iron were dearer by four per cent, three per cent and two per cent respectively.

However, prices of few items like decorative laminates fell by eight per cent, while that of aluminium bars and rods declined by three per cent.

Inflation for the week ended May 12, was revised to 5.62 per cent compared to the provisional figure of 5.27 per cent. This was done as WPI for the week stood at 212.4 points against the provisional figure of 211.7.

Analysts attributed the slight pick-up in prices to the annual monsoon pushing up food prices, a seasonal factor that was unlikely to prompt a response from the RBI. Markets also showed little reaction, with the rupee and 10-year bond moving only slightly after the data.

Finance minister P Chidambaram meanwhile raised concerns about the unbridled rise in prices and spoke of new policy measures to tackle inflation.

The Reserve Bank of India, which is aiming to contain inflation near 5 per cent for the fiscal year ending March 2008, is unlikely to further tighten interest rates.