Inflation inches up to 4.92%

NEW DELHI: Inflation has increased marginally to touch 4.92% for the week ended August 12, as compared to 4.82% for the earlier week. The rate was 3.67% for the corresponding week a year ago. The increase in inflation is attributed to rising prices of food and manufactured products.

Commenting on the rise in inflation, finance minister P Chidambaram said on Friday that the government was trying to keep the priceline below 5% in the current fiscal. “Our tolerance for inflation has come down. We have to have inflation at tolerable levels,” he said.

The minister said govenment had allowed import of wheat and pulses to keep prices of essential commodities under check. Ample liquidity is being provided to soften the impact of hardening global interest rates, he said.

“Hardening of global interest rates is not in our control. What we are doing is to ensure ample liquidity so that the impact of hardening interest rates is softened,” he said. The wholesale price index data, released by the government on Friday shows a jump in prices of food and food products. The index for food articles group has risen by 0.5%.