Wholesale price inflation extended its upward momentum for a second consecutive month, rising to 0.83 per cent in December 2025, supported by higher prices of food, non-food articles and manufactured products on a month-on-month basis, government data released on Wednesday showed.

Wholesale Price Index (WPI)-based inflation returned to positive territory in December after remaining in deflation for the previous two months. In November and October, WPI inflation stood at (-) 0.32 per cent and (-) 1.21 per cent, respectively, while it was significantly higher at 2.57 per cent in December 2024.

"Positive rate of inflation in December 2025 is primarily due to an increase in prices of other manufacturing, minerals, manufacture of machinery and equipment, manufacture of food products, and textiles, etc.," the industry ministry said in a statement.

According to the data, deflation in food articles eased to 0.43 per cent in December from 4.16 per cent in November. Vegetable prices also showed lower deflation at 3.50 per cent in December, compared with 20.23 per cent in the previous month.

Inflation in manufactured products rose to 1.82 per cent in December, up from 1.33 per cent in November 2025. The non-food articles category recorded an inflation of 2.95 per cent in December, compared with 2.27 per cent a month earlier.

However, deflation persisted in the fuel and power segment, which registered negative inflation of 2.31 per cent in December, marginally higher than 2.27 per cent in November.

Meanwhile, data released earlier this week showed retail inflation edged up to 1.33 per cent in December from 0.71 per cent in November, largely driven by higher food prices.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has reduced policy interest rates by a cumulative 1.25 percentage points in the current fiscal year as inflation remained subdued. Last month, the central bank sharply lowered its inflation projection for the current fiscal to 2 per cent from 2.6 per cent estimated earlier, citing rapid disinflation in the economy.

The RBI, which primarily tracks retail inflation while setting benchmark interest rates, cut the key policy rate by 25 basis points to 5.25 per cent last month, stating that the Indian economy is in a "rare Goldilocks period" characterised by strong growth and low inflation.

The central bank has also raised its GDP growth projection for FY26 to 7.3 per cent from 6.8 per cent earlier. India recorded economic growth of 8.2 per cent in the September quarter and 7.8 per cent in the June quarter.