New Delhi, Oct. 15 -- Apart from retail inflation in India, prices at the wholesale level also saw upward pressure intensify last month. The inflation rate based on the wholesale price index (WPI) climbed in September to 11.4% from a year earlier, according to government data released on Wednesday; it was 9.9% in August.

Fuel and power prices along with food drove the increase. This is explained by last month's spike in global crude oil prices, even as below-normal rainfall had an impact on Indian farm output.

Though the WPI basket of goods differs from the one tracked by the consumer price index, rising wholesale prices could show up at the retail level too. And since consumer price stability is the primary aim of monetary policy, the ...