Inflation rose to 4.62 per cent for the week ended December 17, from 4.5 per cent in the previous week mainly due to costlier fuel and non-food items.
Increase in prices of naphtha, furnace oil, bitumen, cotton seed, fodder, soyabean, coconut oil, gur and pork pushed up inflation marginally to 4.62 per cent, but it was much lower than 6.44 per cent in the year ago period.
The wholesale price index declined by 0.2 per cent to 197.1 points due to fall in prices of fruits & vegetables, condiments & spices, urad, tobacco groundnut seed, mustard seed, some edible oils, iron steel, complete engines and colour TV sets. It was 188.4 points a year ago.
During the week under review, world oil prices tumbled to $58.06 a barrel on forecasts of warmer weather in the United States.
But domestic petrol and diesel prices were stable as the government preferred a wait and watch policy due to volatility in the international crude oil prices that has contributed most to inflation in India in 2005.
The government and Reserve Bank are watching the price situation in the country as they intend to check inflation within the range of 5-5.5 per cent till the fiscal end.