Inflation drops to 5.37%

Inflation dropped by 0.05 per cent to 5.37 per cent, touching a 34-week low, for the week ended January 22, mainly due to cheaper vegetables, fruits, edible oils, minerals, fuel and manufactured products.

The point-to-point Wholesale Price Index inflation fell for the eighth consecutive week, from 5.42 per cent in the previous week, due to government's and the RBI's steps to contain the price level. It stood at 6.24 per cent in the year-ago period.

The WPI declined by 0.1 per cent to 188.4 points with the indices of primary articles, fuels and manufactured products moving down. It stood at 178.8 points in the previous year period.

Though fuel indices had fallen in the country, in the global markets during the week in review, crude oil prices soared to $49 a barrel.

The final inflation and WPI stood unchanged at their respective levels of 7.30 per cent and 189.6 points during the week ended November 27.