WPI declines to 14-month low to 0.39% in May; food, fuel prices ease

Wholesale price inflation (WPI) declined to 0.39 per cent in May as prices of food articles, manufactured products, and fuel eased, government data showed on Monday. WPI-based inflation was 0.85 per cent in April. It was 2.74 per cent in May last year.

With this WPI has dipped to a 14-month low. 

The Ministry of Commerce & Industry said the positive rate of inflation in May 2025 is primarily due to an increase in prices of manufacture of food products, electricity, other manufacturing, chemicals and chemical products, manufacture of other transport equipment, and non-food articles.

According to the WPI data, food articles saw a deflation of 1.56 per cent in May, against a deflation of 0.86 per cent in April, with vegetables seeing a sharp drop. Deflation in vegetables was 21.62 per cent in May, compared to 18.26 per cent in April.

Manufactured products saw inflation at 2.04 per cent, compared to 2.62 per cent in April. Fuel and power saw a deflation of 2.27 per cent in May, compared to a 2.18 per cent inflation in April.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) mainly takes into account retail inflation while formulating monetary policy. Data released last week showed retail inflation eased to a six-year low of 2.82 per cent in May, mainly due to subdued food prices.

The RBI this month cut benchmark policy interest rates by 0.50 per cent to 5.50 per cent amid easing inflation.