Inflation at 4.65%, lowest in 2003-04

The rate of inflation dipped to its lowest level this fiscal touching 4.65 per cent during the week ended July 12, against 5.15 per cent in the previous week and 2.79 per cent in the corresponding period last year.

The decrease was largely due to cheaper vegetables, fruits, edible oils, wheat and eggs, even as fuel prices stood unchanged.

The wholesale price index for the week ended July 12 fell 0.2 per cent to 173.3 from 173.7 in the previous week, according to provisional official data. The index for primary products declined 0.6 per cent to 181 from 182.1 in the previous week.

Though the index for fuel, power, lights and lubricants remained unchanged at 247.3, the index for manufactured goods declined 0.2 per cent to 154.1 during the week ended July 12 from 154.4 in the previous week.

WPI for the week ended May 17 was revised to 173.4, against the provisional level of 172.3, while the point-to-point inflation was reworked at 6.58 per cent, against the provisional mark of 5.9 per cent.

Within the primary articles group, the index for food products fell 0.9 per cent to 180.9 during the week ended July 12 due to lower prices of fruits and vegetables, eggs, maize and barley.

The non-food articles group, however, rose 0.2 per cent to 186.1 owing to costlier cotton seed (6 per cent), rape and mustard seed (2 per cent) and raw cotton, copra, soyabean and castor seed (1 per cent each).

Prices, however, fell for sunflower (4 per cent), raw rubber (3 per cent) and groundnut seed and safflower seed (1 per cent each).

The manufactured goods index, which has an over 65 per cent weightage, decreased on account of a 0.7 per cent decline in food products as also textiles (0.9 per cent), paper and paper products (0.5 per cent), non-metallic mineral products (0.3 per cent) and basic metal alloys and metal products (0.1 per cent).

The index for machinery and machine tools witnessed a 0.6 per cent increase, while the chemicals and chemical products group rose 0.1 per cent.

The group index for minerals was up 0.3 per cent to 119.7 points due to costlier fire clay and magnesite (14 per cent each), barytes (13 per cent), vermiculite (6 per cent), fluorite (4 per cent) and stealite (1 per cent).