Industry Odisha Bureau, Jun 16: Following a sharp rise in the prices of food and manufactured items as well as of the fuel and energy prices, India’s wholesale inflation soared to 9.68% in May from 8.26% in April 2026.
As per media reports, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry reportedly released yesterday “the new series of the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) with an updated base year of 2022-23 highlighting that the inflation rate of May 2026 is the highest.”
So far, the category of food items is concerned, it reportedly “rose up to 3.6% in May 2026 in comparison to April’s 2.4%, and a contraction in prices of 2.6% in May 2025.”
So far, the category of crude oil and natural gas is concerned, it reportedly “rose up to 61.5% in May 2026 in comparison to April’s 56.3%, while “the new series of the WPI shows prices in this category contracted by 15.5% in May last year.”
So far, the category of mineral oils is concerned, it also reportedly “rose up to 49.8% in May 2026 in comparison to April’s 40.7%.”
So far, the category of manufactured products is concerned, it also reportedly “rose up to 7.5% in May 2026 in comparison to April’s 6.7% and also 1.4% in May 2025.”
It has also been reported that, “tobacco products, textiles, chemicals, basic metals and electrical equipment witnessed inflation above 10% in May 2026.”
Notably, “The Wholesale Inflation/Price Index (WPI) for India is set to change its base year from 2011-12 to 2022-23 starting from June 2026. This change reflects a significant increase in inflation rates, with the index rising to 9.68% in May 2026, driven by rising energy and manufacturing costs. The new WPI will track 957 individual items providing a more comprehensive view of price changes compared to the previous base year.”
