In October, the inflation rate for food articles decreased to 2.53%, down from 3.35% in September, according to official data. The annual inflation rate based on the All India Wholesale Price Index (WPI) has remained in negative territory for the seventh consecutive month, as indicated by data released by the Ministry of Commerce & Industry on Tuesday.
The provisional figures for October, 2023, reveal an annual inflation rate of (-) 0.52% based on the WPI, in contrast to the (-) 0.26% recorded in September, 2023. The decline is attributed to reduced prices in various sectors such as chemicals, chemical products, electricity, textiles, basic metals, food products, paper, and paper products compared to the same month in the previous year.
Specifically, inflation in food articles eased to 2.53% in October, a decrease from the 3.35% recorded in the preceding month. Non-food articles also experienced a reduction in inflation, standing at -1.33% in October compared to -2.38% in the previous month.
In the fuel and power basket, inflation was (-) 2.47% in October, showing an improvement from the (-) 3.35% recorded in the previous month. Meanwhile, the inflation rate for manufactured products was (-) 1.13%, a slight improvement from the (-) 1.34% in the previous month.
The month-over-month change in the WPI index for October, 2023, was 0.40%, as compared to September, 2023, according to the data.
