Wholesale inflation eases to 2.05% in March from 2.38% in previous month

Domestic wholesale inflation stood at 2.05 per cent in March, easing from 2.38 per cent the previous month, according to official data released on Tuesday. Measured by the Wholesale Price Index (WPI), wholesale inflation—or the rate of increase in the bulk prices of a basket of items—is a key macroeconomic metric of the overall price trends in an economy.

Food Inflation

Wholesale inflation in food iterms, measured by the WPI Food Index, eased to 4.66 per cent last month from 5.94 per cent in February.

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The index has a weightage of 24.38 per cent in the overall WPI index.

The WPI Food gauge comprises food articles from the primary articles group and food products from the manufactured products group.

Here are key things to know about the latest headline inflation data:

What cooled overall inflation reading in March 2025?

The sequentially lower reading was mainly driven by an increase in the prices of manufacture of food products, other manufacturing and food articles, electricity, and textiles, according to an official statement.

Here's how inflation in three main categories fared in March:

Primary articles: Inflation eased to 0.76 per cent from 2.81 per cent the previous month
Fuels and power: Inflation stood at 0.20 per cent from a 0.71 per cent deflation (negative inflation) the previous month
Manufactured products: Inflation worsened to 3.07 per cent from 2.86 per cent the previous month

While primary articles carry a weightage of 22.62 per cent in the WPI index, the 'fuel and power' and manufactured products categories stand at 13.15 per cent and 64.23 per cent, respectively.

When is April WPI inflation data due?

The wholesale inflation data for trends in teh current month will be released around noon on May 14.