The point-to-point inflation rate, based on the wholesale price index (WPI) for all commodities (base: 1993-94 = 100), rose from the previous week's level of 6.78 per cent, and 3.22 per cent a year ago.

The WPI rose by 0.1 per cent to 157.7, from the previous week's figure of 157.5 and 147.5 in the previous year. The final WPI during the first week of September stood at 154.2 compared to the provisional level of 153.5. The final inflation rate for the week ended September 2 was at 6.13 per cent as against the provisional figure of 5.64 per cent. Although primary articles became cheaper by 0.1 per cent, manufactured products' prices rose by 0.4 per cent. Prices of fuel remained unchanged at previous week's level. The index for primary articles' group fell marginally by 0.1 per cent on account of 0.3 per cent decline in the non-food items' prices. Primary articles' group index stood at 164 compared to previous week's level of 164.2 and 162.2 a year ago.

Food articles' index stood firm at previous week's level of 173.5, on account of a sharp increase in the prices of fish-marine (five per cent), poultry chicken (three per cent), milk (two per cent) and barley and moong (one per cent each). However, there was a decline in the prices of fish-inland (six per cent), eggs (four per cent), beef and buffalo meat (three per cent), ragi, fruits and vegetables (two per cent each), rice, jowar, bajra, tea, urad, pork, condiments and spices (one per cent each).

The index for non-food articles' group also declined by 0.3 per cent to 144.2 from the previous figure of 144.7, due to cheaper groundnut seed (five per cent), raw silk, linseed, hides raw, raw rubber and fodder (one per cent each). But raw cotton became costlier by two per cent and copra by one per cent. Contrastingly, the inflation index for fuel, power, light and lubricants' group stood unchanged at the previous week's level of 219. It was only 167.2 a year ago.

(PTI)