Food inflation rises to 8.31 pc for week ended July 2

New Delhi, July 14: Snapping a two-week declining trend, food inflation rose to 8.31 per cent for the week ended July 2 on the back of soaring prices of protein-based items, cereals and vegetables.

Food inflation, as measured by the Wholesale Price Index (WPI), rose by 0.70 percentage points during the week under review vis-a-vis the previous week. The rate of price rise in food items stood at 7.61 per cent in the previous week, ended June 25.

As per data released by the government today, fruits and milk became 13.54 per cent and 12.39 per cent costlier, respectively, during the week under review. Prices of protein-based items like eggs, meat and fish went up by 11.95 per cent annually.

Furthermore, cereals became 5.40 per cent costlier, while vegetable prices were up by 2.25 per cent. Prices of onions shoot up 30.72 per cent on an annual basis.

Among the food items that saw some moderation in prices were pulses (down by 8.46 per cent) and potatoes (down by 2.56 per cent).

The latest numbers on the rate of price rise in food items are the lowest since the week ended June 11, when food inflation stood at 9.13 per cent.

Meanwhile, inflation in overall primary articles stood at 11.58 per cent for the week ended July 2, up from 11.56 per cent in the previous week. Primary articles have a share of over 20 per cent in the WPI basket.

Inflation of non-food primary items stood at 15.20 per cent during the week under review, down from 17.69 per cent in the previous week.

Prices of fibres were up almost 34 per cent, while fuel and power became more expensive by 11.89 per cent Y-o-Y. LPG became dearer by 14.58 per cent on an annual basis.

PTI