ISLAMABAD: The weekly inflation measured by the Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI), continued the downward trajectory while registering further decline by 0.34 percent for the combined consumption groups during the week closed on May 23, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) reported on Friday.
As per the PBS data, the SPI for the under reviewed week in the above-mentioned group was witnessed at 308.19 points against the previous week closing of 309.25.
Comparing the corresponding week with that of the previous year, the SPI for the combined consumption group in the under reviewed week registered an increase of 21.31 percent. The weekly SPI with the base year 2015-16 =100 covers 17 urban centres and 51 essential items for all expenditure groups.
The SPI for the lowest consumption group of up to Rs 17,732, went down by 0.38 percent and went down to 298.56 points from the last week’s 299.70 points.
Whereas the SPI for consumption groups of Rs 17,732-22,888, Rs 22,889-29,517, Rs 29,518-44,175 and above Rs 44,175, witnessed a decrease by 0.39 percent, 0.35 percent, 0.36 and 0.33 percent respectively.
During the week, out of 51 commodities, rates of 12 (23.53%) items went up, 18 (35.29%) items went down and 21 (41.18%) items remained unchanged.
Weekly Increase, Decrease in Price
The commodities, which witnessed a decline in their average prices on a week-on-week basis included garlic (7.87%), chicken (5.92%), wheat flour (4.66%), LPG (3.23%), onions (1.99%), eggs (1.22%), rice basmati broken (1.12%), pulse masoor (0.95%), rice irri (0.84%) and firewood (0.04%).
The items which registered an increase in their average prices on week-on-week basis comprising beef (0.49%), energy saver (0.44%), pulse gram (0.42%), milk powder (0.37%), tea prepared (0.30%), mutton (0.25%), gur (0.22%), shirting (0.17%), cigarettes (0.13%), curd (0.11%) and milk fresh (0.06%).
On year-on-year (y-o-y) basis, the items that recorded a decline included bananas (38.32%), wheat flour (30.82%), chicken (23.18%), cooking oil 5 litre (18.83%), vegetable ghee 1 kg (16.07%), vegetable ghee 2.5 kg (16.02%), mustard oil (12.49%), LPG (10.92%) and eggs (7.62%).
While the items, which registered an increase in their average prices on year-on-year basis included, gas charges for Q1 (570.00%), onions (88.26%), chilies powder (69.71%), garlic (53.46%), tomatoes (38.63%), salt powder (32.72%), shirting (30.39%), gents sandal (25.01%), beef (23.70%), energy saver (22.48%), pulse mash (21.79%) and sugar (20.18%).
