NEW DELHI, March 14 Reuters India39;s wholesale price index in February rose at a slower pace than in the previous month, mainly due a sharper fall in manufactured products and power prices, government data showed on Thursday.

In February, wholesale prices rose 0.20 yearonyear, compared with a 0.27 gain in January. The latest figures were also slower than economists39; expectation of a 0.25 rise, according to a Reuters poll.

In February, manufactured product prices fell 1.27 against a 1.13 fall in the previous month, while fuel and power prices fell 1.59 from a year earlier, compared with a 0.51 drop in January. Food prices rose 4.09 yearonyear compared with an increase of 3.79 in January, while prices of primary articles were up 4.49 versus a rise of 3.84.

Earlier this week, government data showed the country39;s retail inflation rate remained steady in February.

Reporting by Aftab Ahmed; Editing by Kim Coghill and Muralikumar Anantharaman

Source Reuters