Wholesale Inflation Rises To 11-Month High Of 2.13% In February

India’s wholesale inflation rose to an 11-month high of 2.13% in February 2026, up from 1.81% in January, according to data released on March 16 by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

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The increase was recorded in the Wholesale Price Index (WPI), which tracks price changes at the wholesale level across sectors including fuel, metals, chemicals and manufactured products.

Government data showed that the rise in wholesale inflation during February coincided with an increase in consumer inflation during the same period.

Consumer Inflation Also Increased

Data from the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation showed that retail inflation, measured through the Consumer Price Index, rose to 3.2% in February from 2.7% in January.

The increase in consumer inflation was mainly driven by faster growth in food prices, according to official data.

Retail inflation has remained below the Reserve Bank of India medium-term target of 4% for more than a year, based on the latest CPI readings released by the statistics ministry.

WPI Sensitive To Commodity Prices

Wholesale inflation also responds faster to fluctuations in global commodity prices because the WPI includes a larger proportion of fuel, energy products, and raw materials.

Changes in prices of crude oil and other products have a bearing on logistics and manufacturing costs. The wholesale price index mirrors these costs.

According to government statistics, global commodity prices have a major influence on the movement of the WPI in India.

Earlier Commodity Price Surge

During the global commodity price rally between April 2021 and December 2022, India’s wholesale inflation averaged around 12.4%, according to official data from the commerce ministry.

The increase during that period was mainly linked to higher prices of energy products, metals and other industrial commodities across international markets.

Wholesale inflation remained elevated during that phase before moderating as global commodity prices stabilised.

The latest data indicates that wholesale price growth increased again in February compared with the previous month, reflecting movements in commodity and input costs recorded during the period, according to the commerce ministry’s inflation release.