New Delhi, 16 February (H.S.): India recorded a third consecutive monthly rise in wholesale inflation on Monday, with the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) climbing to 1.81 percent in January—the highest in nine months—up from December 2025's 0.83 percent.

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry attributed this escalation to month-on-month price surges in food articles, non-food items, and manufactured products, particularly basic metals, other manufacturing, textiles, and food commodities, contrasting January 2025's 2.51 percent rate.

Consumer Price Index (CPI)-based retail inflation concurrently rose to 2.75 percent in January, propelled by elevated food and precious metal costs—the inaugural figures under the revised 2024 base year—signaling broadening price pressures across producer and consumer baskets.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar