Inflation rate eased to 4.61%

NEW DELHI: The headline inflation rate has eased to 4.61%, for the week ended 29 July, 2006, from 4.67% in the previous week. Finance minister P Chi-dambaram also exuded confidence that the softer inflation trend would continue.

“Given the current market condition and the brisk pace of economic growth, headline inflation is expected to remain at about 4.5 %,” the minister told Parliament during a debate on Friday.

He, however, said prices of wheat, pulses and sugar were a matter of concern and steps were being taken to ensure their availability at af-fordable prices.

The inflation rate was 4.16% in the corresponding week, a year ago. While the price line for primary artricles moved downward by 0.1%, the index for food articles behaved even better, declining by 0.2%.

This was due to lower prices of urad, and milk. But prices rose for eggs, condiments and spieces.

The price index for manufactured articles has however risen by 0.1%, over that of previous week. Within manufactured produts, the index for food products group rose by 0.2%due to higher prices of processed tea, cotton seed oil, suji, imported edible oil, atta, gur, maida, ground-nut oil and coconut oil.

The index for textiles has also risen and that so has that fro chemicals and chemicals products, mainly due to rising prices of hessain and sacking bags, carbon black, phenol, resins and toothpaste. The index for basic metals was the only one that fell in this week.