Islamabad, March 28, 2025 – In a welcome development for consumers, weekly inflation has dropped by 0.15% ahead of Eid-ul-Fitr, according to data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) on Friday. The decline in weekly inflation offers some relief amid broader economic concerns.
The PBS reported that the Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI), which measures weekly inflation, registered a 0.15% decrease compared to the previous week. The SPI is calculated on a weekly basis to monitor price fluctuations of essential commodities, providing a real-time assessment of inflationary trends. It tracks the prices of 51 essential items collected from 50 markets across 17 cities in Pakistan.
For the week ending March 27, 2025, the weekly inflation decline was primarily driven by a drop in prices of key food items. Major reductions were noted in the prices of onions (4.68%), bananas (4.27%), eggs (3.87%), garlic (2.23%), potatoes (1.47%), chicken (1.29%), sugar (0.94%), and pulse gram (0.67%). This downward trend in food prices has contributed to a slight easing of inflationary pressures.
Conversely, some commodities witnessed price increases during the same period. Tomatoes recorded a sharp rise of 9.62%, while LPG prices increased by 1.17%. Other notable hikes were observed in lawn printed fabric (0.62%), pulse mash (0.56%), gur (0.51%), beef (0.30%), long cloth (0.29%), pulse masoor (0.20%), mustard oil (0.13%), and vegetable ghee (2.5 kg) (0.10%).
Out of the 51 essential items monitored, the PBS noted that prices of 10 items (19.61%) increased, 10 items (19.61%) decreased, while the remaining 31 items (60.78%) remained stable. This balance indicates that while some relief is evident, inflationary pressures persist in certain sectors.
On a year-on-year basis, inflation showed a decrease of 1.26%, with significant reductions in the prices of onions (68.64%), wheat flour (33.33%), chilies powder (20.00%), and electricity charges (18.92%). However, items such as ladies’ sandals (75.09%), pulse moong (27.22%), powdered milk (25.75%), and beef (21.37%) experienced notable price hikes, reflecting ongoing inflationary challenges.
As Pakistan approaches Eid-ul-Fitr, the weekly inflation trend will be closely monitored, with hopes that further reductions will ease economic burdens on households.