The rate turned negative for the week ended June 6 for the first time since the new wholesale price index (WPI) series started in 1995. The inflation rate had also turned negative in 1977.
Negative inflation implies that the average wholesale price level was lower during a given week than it was in the corresponding week a year ago. It does not necessarily reflect retail prices.
The price indices for primary articles, manufacturing products and fuel, power, light and lubricants rose for the week ended Sep 5.
The index for primary articles rose 1.3 percent to 274.7 (provisional) from 271.2 (provisional) the week before. Similarly the index for manufactured products also rose 0.1 percent to 208.1 (provisional) from 207.9 (provisional).
The price index for fuel, power, light & lubricants also rose marginally to 343.4 (provisional) from 343.3 (provisional) for the previous week due to higher prices of bitumen (9 percent), furnace oil and light diesel oil (4 percent each) and aviation turbine fuel (2 percent). However, the price of naphtha declined 7 percent.
Earlier, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee had said inflation would turn positive by September.
According to experts, inflation turned positive little faster than expected.
“This is definitely a sign of recovery and the government will now look at raising tax concessions and other sops,” said Dalip Kumar of the National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER)
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