Weekly inflation for essential commodities climbed by 0.73%, while annual inflation rose by 4.32%, according to the latest report from the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS). The data shows that prices of 14 essential items increased, 12 items became cheaper, and 25 remained unchanged.
As per the weekly report issued by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) on the Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI), the SPI for consumers stood at 377.99 points for the week ending November 27. This compares to 335.54 points at the end of the previous week and 324 points on November 28 last year.
During the past week, prices of 12 daily-use essential items declined, and 25 items remained unchanged, while the prices of 14 items increased.
Items showing a decrease included tomatoes (down 28.39%), onions (10.08%), potatoes (4.58%), powdered salt (2.47%), gram lentils (1.18%), garlic (1.12%), eggs (0.75%), and wheat flour (0.70%).
On the other hand, prices rose for items commonly used by low-income households: electricity (11.11%), LPG (3.51%), moong dal (1.92%), 2.5 kg ghee (1.12%), bananas (0.65%), 5-litre cooking oil (0.64%), powdered milk (0.43%), 1-kg ghee (0.38%), cigarettes (0.25%), firewood and sugar (0.20%), and beef (0.01%).
For the lowest-income group, earning up to Rs17,732 per month, the SPI decreased by 0.09%. Conversely, for income groups earning Rs17,733–22,888, Rs22,889–29,517, Rs29,518–44,175, and above Rs44,175 per month, the SPI rose by 0.99%, 0.49%, 0.28%, and 0.60%, respectively.
The Sensitive Price Indicator is calculated based on price fluctuations of 51 essential items across 50 markets in 17 major cities nationwide.
