India on Monday released Producer Price Index (PPI) data for goods and services for the first time, paving the way for the gradual replacement of the Wholesale Price Index (WPI), which will be discontinued over the next five years, PTI reported.The move is in line with practices followed by advanced economies and recommendations of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which highlighted the need for India to move from PPI to PPI.Along with bulk inflation data for May, the government released output and input indicators for the first time.“It also explains how the inflation experienced by producers on input items is passed on through the output that is produced,” the Ministry of Trade and Industry said, adding that the issuance of the wholesale price index will be discontinued after 5 years.The ministry said that the availability of producer and input price indices would provide a better understanding of price movements in elements of production as well as inputs used by industries.The All-India Producer Price Index for all commodities was 109.6 in May 2026, compared to 108.6 in April 2026.The beta All India Producer Price Index for the manufacturing sector stood at 104.9 in May 2026.The ministry said that the PPI is being published on a pilot basis to assess the quality of data and obtain feedback from stakeholders and users.
In line with the increase in wholesale inflation to 9.68% in May from 8.26% in April, producer price index inflation rose to 9.4% from 8.1% during the same period.The revised base year for both the PPI and PPI is 2022-23 and covers 957 items.According to the ministry, the WPI and revised WPI (goods) series cover representative goods transacted in the economy, while the WPI (goods) covers representative goods consumed by the manufacturing sector.In the first phase, the PPI service covers banking, securities transactions, insurance, pension fund management, railways, air passenger transportation and telecommunications services. The remaining services will be covered in the next phase using data collected through price surveys and the Global Placement Network (GSTN).Manufactured items carry the highest weight of 69.93% in the PPI (goods), followed by agriculture, forestry and fishing at 22.16%, electricity at 4.49%, and mining and quarrying at 3.42%.For the service PPI, no weights are assigned because the seven services do not yet cover the entire service sector.This compares to PPI weights of 63.12% for manufactured products, 14.11% for fuel and energy, and 22.76% for raw materials.The move comes after a report was submitted in April by a working group headed by Ramesh Chand, former member of NITI Aayog. The committee was tasked with reviewing the base year of the PPI from 2011-12 to 2022-23 and compiling the PPI series with 2022-23 as the base year.“Unlike the PPI, the PPI – which comprises a set of indices such as the PPI (goods) and the PPI for services – provides a more precise measurement of price changes from the perspective of producers, thus enhancing its suitability for use in national accounts/GDP compilation and estimation of real value added,” Chand said in the report.This data was issued by the Ministry of Trade and Industry.
