India's WPI inflation eases to 10.7% in September

India's annual wholesale price-based inflation (WPI) eased in September to 10.70% as against 12.41% recorded in August 2022 and 11.8% in September last year, government data showed on Friday.

The September WPI was lower than the Reuters forecast of 11.50%.

September is the 18th consecutive month of double-digit WPI inflation. This year, the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) touched a record high of 15.88% in May.

Food inflation based on WPI Food Index also decreased to 8.08% in September, 2022 from 9.93% in August, 2022. 

However, inflation in vegetables rose to 39.66% during the month, as against 22.29% in August.

Inflation in September, 2022 is primarily contributed by rise in prices of mineral oils, food articles, crude petroleum & natural gas, chemicals & chemical products, basic metals, electricity, textiles etc as compared to the corresponding month of the previous year, as per the government's release.

In the fuel and power basket, inflation came in lower at 32.61% in September, against 33.67% in August. In manufactured products and oil seeds it was 6.34% and (-) 16.55%, respectively.

Earlier this week, government data showed that India's retail inflation accelerated to a five-month high of 7.41% in September, driven by soaring food costs, adding pressure on the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to act aggressively to slow price increases.

Inflation has remained over the RBI's upper tolerance band of 6% for the ninth straight month.

Economists expect inflation to hover around the 7% mark over the next couple of months due to last year's low base, even as easing energy and commodity prices globally would help cool inflationary pressures. RBI has projected inflation for 2022-23 at 6.7%.

The RBI mainly looks at retail inflation to frame monetary policy. RBI's monetary policy committee (MPC) hiked the repo rate for the fourth time in a row on 30 September, taking the policy rates to a three-year high of 5.9%.