India’s Wholesale Inflation becomes broad based rises to 11.39% in September 2026; Fuel and Power and Primary Articles Drive Price Pressures: PHDCCI

New Delhi, October 14, 2026: India’s annual (year on year) Wholesale Price Index (WPI) inflation increased to 11.39% in September 2026, compared with 9.92% in August 2026. “The increase in wholesale inflation across food articles, fuel and power, and manufactured products highlights the need for businesses to closely monitor input costs and pricing conditions. Greater efficiency in energy use, supply-chain management and procurement planning will be important in managing cost pressures and sustaining industrial competitiveness said Anil Gupta, President, PHDCCI.”
The increase in wholesale inflation was broad-based, with Primary Articles, Fuel and Power, and Manufactured Products recording year-on-year inflation of 8.67%, 25.85%, and 9.76%, respectively, in September 2026. These rates were higher than the corresponding figures for August 2026, indicating that price pressures were not confined to a single major category.
The Fuel and Power category recorded inflation of 25.85% in September 2026, compared with 22.93% in August. Within this group, the index for crude petroleum and natural gas rose sharply, while mineral oils continued to record substantial year-on-year price increases. The cumulative WPI index for Fuel and Power increased by 25.31% during April–September FY2026-27 compared with the corresponding period of the previous year, he added.
Manufactured Products inflation rose to 9.76% in September 2026 from 8.37% in August 2026. Within manufacturing, price increases were observed across several categories, including food products, textiles, chemicals and chemical products, rubber and plastic products, basic metals, and electrical equipment.
The increase in manufactured-product inflation is relevant for businesses because wholesale input and output prices influence production costs, pricing decisions, margins and working-capital requirements.
The cumulative WPI index for All Commodities increased by 9.85% during April–September FY2026-27 compared with the corresponding period of FY2025-26. Manufactured Products recorded cumulative index growth of 8.08%, while Primary Articles increased by 6.89%, he said.
The latest data indicate that wholesale inflation requires close monitoring across energy, primary commodities and manufactured goods. The extent to which these pressures translate into retail inflation will depend on factors such as the composition of consumer expenditure, the degree of pass-through, distribution and logistics costs, firms’ pricing power, and the persistence of commodity-price movements. The WPI release alone does not establish the extent of pass-through to the Consumer Price Index.
“The latest WPI figures point to inflationary pressures across several stages of production. While wholesale price movements do not translate one-to-one into retail inflation, their persistence could influence corporate margins, working-capital requirements and investment decisions. A disaggregated assessment of commodity and sector-level trends will be essential for understanding the implications for the broader economy said Dr. Ranjeet Mehta, SG & CEO, PHDCCI.”