Islamabad, December 6, 2024 – The Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) reported on Friday that weekly inflation, measured by the Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI), declined by 0.34% for the week ending December 5, 2024, compared to the previous week.
The SPI is a key metric used to track the price movement of essential commodities on a weekly basis, offering insights into short-term inflation trends. It is calculated using a basket of 51 essential items collected from 50 markets in 17 cities across the country.
For the week under review, significant decreases were recorded in the prices of several essential items. Tomatoes saw the most notable reduction at 25.15%, followed by chicken (-9.90%), pulse mash (-1.67%), pulse gram (-0.73%), wheat flour (-0.71%), pulse masoor (-0.46%), and both basmati and IRRI-6/9 rice (-0.37% each). LPG prices also declined slightly by 0.19%.
Conversely, prices of some items registered increases. Garlic saw the highest rise at 1.83%, followed by vegetable ghee (2.5kg) at 1.72%, potatoes (1.69%), petrol (1.48%), sugar (1.33%), diesel (1.27%), onions (1.10%), vegetable ghee (1kg) at 1.07%, and cooking oil (5 liters) at 0.99%. Other items, including bananas, firewood, and cigarettes, recorded smaller price hikes.
During the week, out of the 51 monitored items, prices of 18 items (35.29%) increased, 10 items (19.61%) decreased, and 23 items (45.10%) remained stable.
On an annual basis, the SPI reflects a 3.57% increase in prices compared to the same period last year. Notable year-on-year price hikes include ladies’ sandals (75.09%), pulse gram (65.64%), pulse moong (37.83%), powdered milk (25.74%), and beef (23.77%). Conversely, significant reductions were observed in wheat flour (-35.40%), chili powder (-20.00%), diesel (-10.77%), petrol (-10.33%), and electricity charges for Q1 (-6.96%).
The decline in weekly inflation offers a brief respite for households, though broader year-on-year inflation trends continue to reflect significant price pressures across various essential commodities.
