Pakistan’s short-term inflation, as measured by the Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI), decreased by 0.08% compared to the previous week as of October 10, 2024. However, on a year-on-year basis, inflation surged by 12.74%, according to the latest data from the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) released on Friday.
The SPI is calculated on a weekly basis to monitor the price movements of essential commodities, providing a real-time assessment of inflationary trends in the country. The index covers 51 essential items sourced from 50 markets across 17 cities in Pakistan. During the week under review, 15 items (29.42%) saw price increases, 8 items (15.68%) witnessed declines, and 28 items (54.90%) remained stable.
Notable Price Changes
Among the commodities that recorded significant price decreases during the week were:
- Tomatoes: Down 19.79%
- Bananas: Down 2.91%
- Sugar: Down 1.47%
- Pulse Mash: Down 1.16%
- Chicken: Down 0.84%
Conversely, the prices of some essential items saw notable increases, including:
- Onions: Up 4.14%
- Wheat Flour: Up 1.85%
- Pulse Gram: Up 0.63%
- Mustard Oil: Up 0.35%
- Potatoes: Up 0.30%
Inflation Across Income Groups
The SPI breakdown by income groups revealed that weekly inflation decreased across all income levels, ranging between -0.07% and -0.1%. The lowest income group experienced a 0.09% decline, while the highest income group saw a 0.08% drop.
On a yearly basis, the SPI data showed that inflation increased for all income groups, with a rise ranging from 9.02% to 16.21%. The lowest income group recorded a 9.02% increase in prices compared to the previous year, while the highest income group experienced an 11.16% rise.
Prices of Key Commodities
The PBS also highlighted changes in the prices of key construction and agricultural commodities. The average price of Sona Urea, an essential fertilizer, decreased by 0.45% to Rs4,588 per 50 kg bag compared to the previous week but was 20.72% higher year-on-year. Similarly, the price of Cement declined by 0.35% to Rs1,455 per 50 kg bag compared to the previous week, but on an annual basis, cement prices rose by 21.18%.
This latest SPI report offers a mixed outlook, with short-term inflation showing a slight reprieve but long-term inflationary pressures continuing to impact consumers, particularly those in lower-income brackets.
