The wholesale price index (WPI)-based inflation dipped to a 19-month low of 8.39% in October on easing prices of food, fuel and manufactured items.
Declining for the fifth consecutive month, the WPI inflation cooled to single digit after a gap of one-and-a-half years, giving some comfort to the RBI which has been struggling to rein in price rise.
RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das had last week said consumer price index-based inflation was likely to ease to below 7% in October. RBI takes into account CPI (retail) inflation for deciding monetary policy stance and benchmark interest rates.
Releasing the October WPI inflation data on Monday, the commerce and industry ministry said: “The decline in October inflation is primarily contributed by fall in the price of mineral oils, basic metals, fabricated metal products, except machinery and equipment; textiles; other non-metallic mineral products; minerals etc.” Since April 2021, WPI inflation remained in double digits for 18 months with September print at 10.79%. Inflation in October 2021 was 13.83%.
The earlier single-digit WPI inflation was recorded in March 2021, at 7.89%.