Wholesale inflation jumps to 8.3% in April, highest in three-and-a-half years

India’s Wholesale Price Index-based inflation jumped to 8.3% in April, its highest level in three-and-a-half years, according to data released by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry on Thursday.

This comes in the backdrop of rising global energy rates triggered by the conflict in West Asia. The Wholesale Price Index is a measure of inflation expressed by the changing prices of goods at the first instance of their bulk sale in India.

The last time wholesale price inflation in the country was higher than 8.3% was in October 2022, The Hindu reported. The index had stood at 3.9% in March.

Food inflation at the wholesale level remained relatively low at 2% in April, compared to 1.9% a month earlier.

The country’s retail inflation also rose by 3.4% in April, Reuters reported. Wholesale ⁠fuel and power prices jumped 24.7% year-on-year in April, against a rise of 1.05% in March.

In April, petroleum and natural gas prices rose 67.2%, the news agency reported.

Energy supplies to India have been disrupted since the conflict in West Asia broke out on February 28. Iran has effectively blocked the Strait of Hormuz, through which about 20% of global petroleum liquids supply passes, for most commercial ships.

This has also affected liquefied petroleum gas supplies in India. India imports 88% of its crude oil needs and about half of its natural gas requirement. This...

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