India’s annual wholesale inflation rate — as measured by the All-India Wholesale Price Index — stood at 0.52% in August 2025, according to the latest provisional data released by the Ministry of Commerce & Industry. The increase marks a modest rebound after earlier months of price containment, and reflects nuanced shifts in India’s supply-chain and production landscape.
A closer look at the sectoral breakdown shows that manufactured goods drove the increase, with inflation in that segment up 2.55% year-on-year. Among the manufactured items seeing price increases were other non-metallic mineral products, miscellaneous transport equipment and machinery, and food-product manufacturing. In contrast, the WPI for primary articles — a category that includes agricultural and mineral outputs — declined by 2.10% annually, signaling easing input-cost pressures in raw materials.
Month-on-month, prices also moved upward; the WPI rose 0.52% from July to August. Primary articles recorded the strongest uptick, with non-food articles and minerals showing increases of 2.92% and 2.66% respectively. Meanwhile, the fuel and power index fell 0.69% sequentially, led largely by a decline in electricity prices.
The food price sub-index also showed modest gains in August, up 0.21%, driven by increases in milk and some agricultural products. Within manufactured goods, inflation pressures were broad but uneven, with sectors such as textiles and electrical equipment seeing upward pressure, while areas like basic metals and computer/electronic products saw more stable or even declining prices.
Economists and industry watchers welcomed the relatively mild inflation, noting that rising manufacturing-sector prices might squeeze margins but are not yet triggering systemic inflation risks. The moderation in primary article prices — which often flow through to consumer goods and services — offers some room for monetary policy flexibility, contingent on domestic demand and supply-chain developments in the coming months.
Overall, the August WPI data suggest that India’s inflation dynamics are continuing their slow recalibration as supply-side pressures ease in raw materials, while output prices are absorbing a mix of input cost increases and demand recovery. Policymakers will likely keep a close watch on how these price movements translate downstream to consumers and businesses.