NEW DELHI, May 14 (UPI) -- India's annual inflation rate in April dropped to 4.89 percent, the lowest in more than three years, official data indicated Tuesday.
The April decline in the wholesale price index, the country's main inflation gauge, was the lowest since November 2009 and raised hopes of further interest rate cuts by the central bank in June.
In March, the WPI was 5.96 percent.
The April decline was largely due to easing of inflation of food articles, which account for more than 14 percent in WPI calculation, the Press Trust of India news agency reported. Food inflation fell to 6.08 percent in April from 8.73 percent in March.
WPI inflation in the manufactured items category also declined to 3.41 percent in April from 4.07 per cent in March.
Earlier this month, the Reserve Bank of India, the country's central bank, cut its key interest rate by 0.25 percent to 7.25 percent to spur economic growth.
