Mumbai: The annual rate of inflation based on the wholesale price index rose to a three-year high of seven per cent for the week ended March 22, from 6.68 per cent in the previous week, official data showed.

Inflation rose mainly due to higher prices of food, vegetables, minerals and manufactured items.

During the week, prices of fruits and vegetables went up by one per cent while prices of gram went up by three per cent and masur was up two per cent. Urad, moong, eggs, meat and fish got dearer by one per cent each.

Gingelly, rape and mustard seed were expensive by five per cent while linseed was up three per cent.

Prices of condiments and spices, however,  declined by two per cent and fish-marine was cheaper by four per cent.

The index for minerals was up 38.2 per cent following a 46 per cent rise in iron ore prices .

Among fuel, power, light and lubricants category, prices of furnace oil increased by two per cent.

In manufactured items , sunflower oil shot up by nine per cent and vanaspati by four per cent while butter, mustard oil, sugar and groundnut oil rose by one per cent each. However, ghee, coconut oil came down by one per cent each.

Electrode prices jumped 14 per cent, steel ingots (plain carbon) rose 57 per cent, forgings by 22 per cent, cast iron casting by four per cent and zinc by three per cent. Lead and zinc ingots were down by three per cent.

The inflation rate for the week ended January 26 has been revised to 4.78 per cent from provisional estimate of 4.11 per cent as the wholesale price index finally stood at 219 points against the earlier estimate of 217.6.

The government has taken a slew of measures, including  reduction in import duties of edible oils and hike in the minimum export price for non-basmati rice from $650 per tonne to $1,000 per tonne, to stem the price rise.