The Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI)-based weekly inflation for the week ended June 16 for the combined consumption group witnessed an increase of 3.38 per cent as compared to the previous week.
The SPI for the week under review in the group was recorded at 189.07 points against 182.88 points registered in the previous week, according to the latest data of the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) released on Friday. As compared to the corresponding week of last year, the SPI for the combined consumption group in the week under review witnessed an increase of 27.82 per cent. The weekly SPI with base year 2015-16 is covering 17 urban centers and 51 essential items for all expenditure groups. The SPI for the lowest consumption group up to Rs17,732 witnessed 2.85 per cent increase and went up from 189.06 points in last week to 194.44 points during the week under review.
Meanwhile, the SPI for the consumption groups from Rs17,732-22,888, Rs22,889-29,517, Rs29,518-44,175 and above Rs44,175 increased by 3.45 per cent, 3.10 per cent, 3.12 per cent and 3.10 per cent, respectively.
During the week, out of 51 items, prices of 36 (70.59%) items increased, six (11.76%) items decreased and nine (17.65%) items remained stable. The items, which recorded increase in their average prices on WoW basis, included chicken (12.10% ), potatoes (6.89%), cooked daal (5.90%), pulse gram (5.29%) and cooked beef (5.19%),non-food items diesel (28.91%), gents sponge chappal (26.76%), gents sandal (15.40%), petrol (11.43%), electricity charges for q1 (6.63%) and cigarettes (6.27%), with joint impact of 2.53% on the overall SPI for the combined group. The commodities that witnessed decrease on WoW basis included, onions (5.20%), wheat flour (2.19%), LPG (1.32%), bananas (0.83%), jaggery (0.45%) and sugar (0.02%). On year-on-year basis, the commodities that witnessed increase in prices included onions (135.31%), diesel (132.61%), tomatoes (117.27%), petrol (110.16%), vegetable ghee 1 kg (81.76%), mustard oil (80.88%), pulse masoor (74.77%), cooking oil 5 litre (71.52%), vegetable ghee 2.5 kg (68.47%), lpg (60.97%), garlic (57.72%), washing soap (52.73%), gents sponge chappal (52.21%) and chicken (51.11%). The commodities that witnessed decrease in prices included chilies powdered (43.42%), pulse moong (18.06%), sugar (10.79%), electricity charges for q1 (5.85%) and jaggery (3.35%).
