Islamabad, July 14, 2023 – Pakistan has witnessed a significant 29 percent increase in the prices of essential items, based on the Year on Year (YoY) comparison as of the week ending on July 13, 2023.
According to the weekly report on the Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI) issued by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) on Friday, there has been a substantial year on year upward trend of 28.96% in prices. This increase has affected various essential items.
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Among the essential items that experienced price hikes during this period, some notable ones include Wheat Flour, which recorded an increase of 129.84%. Cigarettes saw a surge of 111.74%, Gas Charges for Q1 rose by 108.38%, Tea Lipton witnessed a spike of 101.56%, Rice Basmati Broken rose by 76.74%, Rice Irri-6/9 increased by 73.88%, Potatoes surged by 61.67%, Gents Sponge Chappal saw a rise of 58.05%, Sugar increased by 57.91%, Chicken witnessed a jump of 56.06%, Salt Powdered rose by 53.49%, Gur increased by 48.30%, and Bread saw a significant increase of 46.86%.
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However, some items did experience a decline in prices during the same period. Onions witnessed a decrease of 28.17%, Electricity for Q1 dropped by 14.58%, Pulse Masoor observed a decline of 7.54%, Diesel decreased by 5.82%, LPG saw a decrease of 1.23%, and Vegetable Ghee 1 kg witnessed a drop of 1.16%.
In the latest week covered by the SPI report, which ended on July 13, 2023, there was a 0.33% increase in the SPI. Major increases were observed in the prices of food items, with Sugar rising by 5.22%, Wheat Flour by 4.23%, Gur by 3.68%, Salt Powdered by 2.17%, and Eggs by 1.34%.
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Conversely, decreases were observed in the prices of Bananas, which dropped by 12.18%, Tomatoes by 6.35%, Onions by 5.32%, LPG by 2.17%, Vegetable Ghee 2.5 kg by 0.85%, Pulse Moong by 0.70%, Cooking Oil 5 Litre by 0.51%, Pulse Gram by 0.46%, Vegetable Ghee 1 kg by 0.36%, Pulse Masoor by 0.18%, and Chicken by 0.13%.
During the week covered by the report, out of 51 items, prices of 21 items (41.17%) increased, 11 items (21.58%) decreased, and 19 items (37.25%) remained stable.
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The significant increase in the prices of essential items has raised concerns among the public, as it impacts the cost of living and poses challenges for households. The government and relevant authorities are urged to closely monitor the situation and take necessary steps to address the rising prices and ensure the availability and affordability of essential commodities for the people.
