New Delhi: The inflation jumped to 7.57 per cent for the week ending April 19 against 7.33 per cent the previous week contrary to analysts’ expectations of 3.38 per cent. The wholesale price index soared on the back of rising primary articles and manufactured goods.
Prices of tea shot up by 17 per cent, even as other food items like milk, rice, vegetables and mutton became dearer.
The prices of light diesel oil and furnace oil went up by two per cent and by one per cent.
In the manufactured products category cast iron pipes jumped by 51 per cent, pig iron by 8 per cent and steel sheets by two per cent.
Whereas commodity prices rose by 0.3 per cent for the week. Economists are seeing the index to rise further and touch the 8 per cent mark.
The annual rate of inflation, based on Wholesale Price Index (WPI), has been rising despite fiscal and monetary measures taken by the government recently.
Talking about the rising price Economist Mahesh Vyas said, “The factors haven’t changed. We had expected inflation to remain high for some time. The old factors of global commodities and food articles being high still hold true. So nothing has changed dramatically. But there is nothing to be alarmed with. The rising inflation has stopped rising further to the credit of the RBI and Government. Inflation has stabilised around 7.5 percent or so.”
“If efforts are taken too aggressively, it could lead to other complications. Better to understand that inflation will be high for some time before it starts coming down. Two weeks have passed, I expect four weeks more to go after which it should start coming down.”
While the government has banned export of certain commodities like non-basmati rice and pulses and reduced customs duties on various other items to rein in inflation, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has raised the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) to suck excess liquidity from the market.
(with agency inputs)
Comments
0 comment