Inflation declines for fourth straight week in Pakistan, Hafeez Shaikh told

ISLAMABAD: Finance Minister Abdul Hafeez Shaikh on Monday presided over a meeting of the national price monitoring committee where it was briefed that the inflation has witnessed a continuous decline in the country during the past four weeks, ARY NEWS reported.

The price monitoring committee was briefed over the prices of the basic commodities as secretary finance said that the prices of wheat, tomatoes, onions, potatoes, and chicken have declined.

“The prices of basic commodities witnessed a decline of 0.22 percent,” the secretary said as Hafeez Shaikh pointed out an increase in the price of eggs, vegetables, and ghee.

Hafeez Shaikh directed the provincial governments to keep a close check on the prices of the commodities and further asked the federal commerce secretary to convene a meeting with FBR and provincial governments in this regard.

The secretary of food security briefed the meeting on the current stocks of wheat and sugar in the country.

It is pertinent to mention here that the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) has also recorded a 0.22 percent decline in weekly inflation on the basis of reduction in prices of eight essential items.

The statistics showed that prices of eight items were reduced and the rates of 23 other items were maintained, whereas, the prices of 20 other items were jacked up this week.

A report compiled by the PBS said an increase was observed in the prices of food items including eggs per dozen up to Rs4.33, over Rs11 per kilogram of garlic, Rs0.84 on sugar per kg, mash pulse, banana, mutton meat and dry milk.

Another increase in prices was recorded in Rs0.20 in electricity per unit, Rs3 on petrol per litre, Rs3 on high-speed diesel (HSD) and the domestic cylinder of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG).

On the other hand, the rates of tomatoes were reduced up to Rs30 per kg, Rs13 on potato, over Rs6 on chicken, moong pulse, masoor pulse, flour and brown sugar.