WPI rises to 15.8% in April; food inflation stands at 8.35%  

India’s wholesale price index (WPI) rose to 15.8 per cent in April this year, up from 10.74 per cent in April 2021, according to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. Food inflation rose to 8.35 per cent in April 2022 from 4.60 per cent in April 2021.   

The Commerce Ministry attributed high inflation in April to the rise in prices of mineral oils, basic metals, crude petroleum and natural gas, food items, non-food articles, chemicals and chemical products, etc. as compared to the year-ago period.   

This list included items like cereals, paddy, pulses, wheat, vegetables, potato, onion, fruits, milk, eggs, fish and meat. Cereals inflation went up to 7.80 per cent in April 2022 from -3.07 per cent in April 2021 whereas paddy inflation went up from -3.16 in April last year to 10.70 per cent in April this year.  

Oil seeds inflation went down drastically from 29.95 per cent in April 2021 to 16.10 per cent in April this year while inflation in manufactured products went up from 9.44 per cent in April last year to 10.85 per cent in April this year.  

Fuel and power products inflation went up from 21.27 per cent in April 2021 to 38.66 per cent in April this year. Products included in manufactured products category are vegetable and animal oils and fats, beverages, tobacco products, textiles, wearing apparel, leather and related products among others.  

On a month-on-month basis, overall inflation went up from 14.55 per cent in March to 15.08 per cent in April this year. Food inflation went up from 8.06 per cent in March to 8.35 per cent in April. Cereals’ inflation stood at 7.80 per cent in April, down by 0.32 per cent from last month.