Inflation coming down slightly

India's inflation, based on the wholesale price index (WPI), slowed to a 15-week low towards the end of September, as prices either declined or remained stable, the Government said. The annual point-to-point inflation stood at 11.8% in the week ended September 27 as against 11.99% in the previous week, the Commerce & Industry said in a statement. The rate was below a median forecast of 11.98%. The annual inflation rate was 3.36% during the corresponding week of the previous year. The WPI for 'all commodities' declined by 0.1% to 240.7 from 241.0 in the previous week. Inflation for the week ended Aug. 2 was revised up to 12.91% from a provisional estimate of 12.44% while the WPI for the same period was increased to 241.4 from the preliminary forecast of 240.4.

The index for Primary Articles group declined by 0.2% to 250.9 from 251.3 in the preceding week, while the annual point-to-point inflation declined to 11.17% from 11.29% reported in the previous week. The index for Fuel & Power group remained unchanged at its previous week's level of 375.3. The rate of inflation remained unchanged at 16.52% for this commodity group. The index for Manufactured Products declined by 0.1% to 207.2 from 207.5 in the previous week. The rate of inflation declined to 10.33% from 10.55% in the previous week. Inflation for 30 essential commodities increased marginally to 7.74% in the week ending September 27 from 7.7% in the previous week.