Food inflation zooms to 19.83 per cent as prices rise again

The annual rate of inflation based on the wholesale price index of food articles (base: 1993-94=100) bounced back to 19.83 per cent during the week ended 19 December after a brief fall to 18.65 per cent during the previous week. Food price inflation stood at 9.38 per cent in the comparable week a year ago (week ended 20 December 2008).

The inflation rate for the `primary articles' group as a whole stood at 15.49 per cent (provisional) for the week against 14.66 per cent (provisional) for the previous week and 10.81 per cent during the corresponding week of the previous year (ended 20 December 2008).

The wholesale price index for the 'primary articles' group as a whole, which also includes the food articles group, declined 0.2 per cent to 284.1 (provisional) from 284.7 (provisional) for the previous week.

The index for the 'food articles' group declined by 0.4 per cent to 287.7 (provisional) from 288.8 (provisional) for the previous week due to lower prices of fruits and vegetables (- 5 per cent), jowar (-2 per cent) and arhar and maize (-1 per cent each). However, the prices of bajra (12 per cent), wheat (4 per cent), rice (2 per cent) and barley and urad (1 per cent each) moved up.

The index for the 'non-food articles' group rose 0.2 per cent to 251.2 (provisional) from 250.7 (provisional) for the previous week due to higher prices of raw rubber (3 per cent) and rape and mustard seed (1 per cent). However, the prices of skins (raw) (-6 per cent) declined.

The index for the `fuel, power, light and lubricants' group remained unchanged at its previous week's level of 344.9 (provisional).

The rate of inflation for the group stood at 4.45 per cent (provisional) for the week against 3.95 per cent (provisional) for the previous week and (-) 0.75 per cent during the corresponding week of the previous year (ended 20 December 2008).