SPI based inflation rate goes down this week: PBS

ISLAMABAD: The Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI)-based inflation this week went down by 0.01 percent for the combined income group, according to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).

The SPI for the week under review for the combined consumption group was recorded at 133.61 points.

The SPI for the combined income group surged 10.29% compared to the corresponding week of previous year, the bureau of statistics said.

The index for the group stood at 139.45 points against 139.99 points in the previous week, according to provisional figures released by the PBS.

During the week, average prices of 23 items rose in a selected basket of goods, prices of 10 items fell and prices of remaining 18 commodities remained stable.

“The second week of July witnessed hike in prices of garlic, sugar, eggs, tomatoes, milk, yughart, chicken, mutton, beef, potatoes, gram pulse, tea, basmati rice, irri rice and dry milk,” the bureau said.

While the prices of tomatoes, wheat flour, bananas, salt, vegetable ghee, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), pulses and cooking oil went down in the week under review.

The prices of bread, chilly powder, electricity, natural gas, petroleum, diesel, kerosene oil, soap and washing powder remained unchanged in the week.

The weekly Sensitive Price Indicator, with base year 2015-16=100, covers 17 urban centers and 51 essential items for all expenditure groups.