Wholesale Price Index Context: The Ministry of Commerce and Industry has released a new series of the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) with an updated base year of 2022-23. The revised WPI has a broader coverage of goods and aligns with global best practices and IMF recommendations. Wholesale inflation rose to 9.7% in May 2026, the highest since April 2024, mainly due to rising prices of crude oil, natural gas, mineral oils, and manufactured products. Historical comparison beyond April 2024 is unavailable because of the change in the base year. Alongside the WPI, the government introduced: Output Producer Price Index (OPPI), Trial Input Producer Price Index (IPPI), and Service Producer Price Index (Service PPI). The Service PPI currently covers seven sectors: Banking, Securities Transactions, Insurance, Pension Fund Management, Railways, Passenger Air Transport, and Telecommunications. The government announced that the Producer Price Index (PPI) will gradually replace the WPI over the next five years. WPI will continue to be published during the transition period because of its extensive use in price escalation clauses and contracts. The shift from WPI to PPI is consistent with practices followed by advanced economies and recommended by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The sharp increase in wholesale inflation in May 2026 was largely caused by the West Asia crisis, which pushed up global fuel prices. Inflation in the crude oil and natural gas category rose to 61.5% in May 2026, compared with 56.3% in April. Inflation in the mineral oils category accelerated to 49.8% from 40.7% in the previous month. Inflation in the manufacturing and food sectors also increased, though at a slower pace than fuel-related categories. Wholesale Price Index (WPI) About The Wholesale Price Index (WPI) is an important macroeconomic indicator that tracks the average movement in the prices of commodities sold in bulk at the…
