The ministry attributed negative inflation mainly to falling prices of food, fuel, metals, and electricity, controlling wholesale rates
New Delhi
India’s wholesale price inflation continued to stay in the negative zone in November, offering relief to businesses and consumers, according to data released by the Commerce and Industry Ministry on Monday.
Wholesale Price Index (WPI) inflation stood at minus 0.32 percent in November compared to the same month last year. This followed a sharper contraction of minus 1.21 percent in October. In contrast, WPI inflation was at 2.16 percent in November last year.
The ministry said the negative inflation rate was mainly due to lower prices of food articles, mineral oils, crude petroleum, natural gas, basic metals and electricity. The steady fall in these key items helped keep overall wholesale prices under control.
Meanwhile, consumer inflation also remained low. Inflation based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) was estimated at 0.71 percent in November, slightly higher than the 0.25 percent recorded in October, as per data released earlier by the Ministry of Statistics.
Food inflation stayed firmly in the negative zone at minus 3.91 percent in November. This marked the sixth consecutive month of falling food prices, easing pressure on household budgets and daily expenses.
The overall inflation outlook remains benign. The Reserve Bank of India has reduced its inflation forecast for the financial year 2025-26 to 2 percent from the earlier estimate of 2.6 percent, helped by falling food prices and the impact of GST rate cuts.
Reflecting the easing inflation, RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra recently announced a 25 basis point cut in the repo rate to 5.25 percent to support economic growth.
Malhotra said strong economic growth and soft inflation have created a favourable period for the Indian economy. He added that core inflation remains under control, food supply conditions have improved, and global commodity prices are expected to soften, supporting price stability going ahead.
