Inflation Rate Down To 5.93 Per Cent

The annual rate of inflation based on wholesale price index (WPI) dropped to 5.93 per cent for the week to May 31. The annual inflation (provisional), calculated on a point-to-point basis, eased to 5.93 per cent in the reference week from six per cent in the previous week. The lowest level reached earlier this fiscal beginning April was 5.98 per cent for the week to May 3.

The rate of increase in inflation has been showing a declining trend in the last four months and has shed more than two percentage points since February. The official WPI for all commodities (base 1981-82=100) was unchan-ged during the week under review at 323.5 (provisional). The rate of inflation during the corresponding week of 1996 was 4.77 per cent.

 

During the week under review, prices of eggs, angles and channels and sections (4 per cent each), witnessed sharp increases, while that of raw jute and sun flower (-8 per cent each), lac (-5 per cent), coconut oil, barley, vegetables and poultry chicken (-4 per cent each) eased substantially.

Meanwhile, the annual rate of inflation based on the final index for the week ended April 5, 1997 stood at 6.7 per cent compared to 7.0 per cent for the week based on provisional index. The rate of price rise started coming down in February this year, after rising steadily for seven months between July-January 1996-97. The inflation, which touched a record low of 4.2 per cent in June last year, started climbing sharply after the petroleum price hike in the first week of July the same year.