Indian inflation declined for the fourth week in succession to a sixmonth low of 6.5 percent and the economy growth slowed in the second quarterof2004.

The point-to-point Wholesale Price Index (WPI) inflation fell by 0.23 percent from 6.73 percent in the previous week due to cheaper food items, edible oils and manufactured goods even as fuel prices remained unchanged.

Finance Minister P Chidambaram had recendy said the government had used one or the other measures to moderate inflation from time to time.

Meanwhile, the economic growth, showing signs of a downslide over the first quarter (7.4 percent), was at 6.6 percent in the second quarter (July-September) of the current financial year.

The consolidated growth in the first six months from April to September stood at seven percent, marginally up from 6.9 percent growth registered in the corre-sponding period last year.