WPI inflation spikes to 8.30% in April as fuel, crude prices soar

New Delhi: Wholesale price inflation rose to 8.30 percent in April from 3.88 percent in March, driven by a steep increase in prices of fuel, power and crude petroleum. The wholesale price index-based inflation (WPI) in fuel and power climbed to 24.71 percent in April from 1.05 percent in March. In crude petroleum, inflation rose to 88.06 percent in April from 51.5 percent in the previous month.

The sharp rise in wholesale inflation reflects the impact of the West Asia crisis and the effective blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, through which most of the crude oil imported by India passes.

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Inflation in food articles stood at 1.98 percent in April, compared with 1.90 per cent in March. In non-food articles, inflation increased to 12.18 percent in April from 11.5 percent in the previous month, according to data released by the commerce and industry ministry.

“Positive rate of inflation in April 2026 is primarily due to an increase in prices of mineral oils, crude petroleum & natural gas, basic metals, other manufacturing and non-food articles, etc.,” the ministry said in a statement.

Within the fuel and power basket, inflation in LPG stood at 10.92 percent in April, compared with (-) 1.54 percent in March. Petrol inflation rose to 32.40 percent from 2.50 percent in the previous month, while high-speed diesel inflation increased to 25.19 percent from 3.26 percent.

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Despite a 50 per cent jump in global crude oil prices, the government has so far kept petrol, diesel and household LPG rates unchanged to cushion households from the rise in retail fuel prices. However, prices of commercial LPG cylinders have been increased.

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