India’s wholesale prices rose 3.36% in June from a year earlier, government data showed on July 15, 2024. File
| Photo Credit: ANI

Inflation in India’s wholesale prices accelerated to 3.4% in June, the highest in 16 months, from 2.6% in May, led by a spike in food inflation to 8.7% and a near-doubling in the rise of manufactured products prices to 1.43%.

Pricier vegetables, cereals, and fruits spurred the rise in food prices paid by Indian consumers to a six-month high of 9.4% in June, escalating the headline retail inflation pace to a four-month high of 5.08% in June, from a revised 4.8% in May, as per data released on Friday.

On a month-on-month basis, wholesale prices were up 0.4% in June, with the Food Index rising 2.5%, the fastest so far this calendar year, and over four times the 0.6% pace recorded in May.

By contrast, manufactured products costs rose 0.14% over May in June, the slowest rise in four months, while fuel and power inflation remained sequentially negative for the fourth straight month at -1.93%