ISLAMABAD: The weekly inflation in Pakistan, measured by the Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI), decreased further by 0.69 percent for the combined consumption groups during the week ended on April 17, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) reported on Friday.
According to the PBS data, the SPI for the week under review in the above-mentioned group was recorded at 314.92 points as compared to 317.12 points during the past week.
As compared to the corresponding week of last year, the SPI for the combined consumption group in the week under review witnessed a decrease of 2.72 per cent.
The weekly SPI with the base year 2015-16 =100 covers 17 urban centres and 51 essential items for all expenditure groups.
The SPI for the lowest consumption group of up to Rs 17,732 witnessed a decrease of 0.80 per cent and went down to 303.20 points from last week’s 305.65 points.
The SPI for consumption groups of Rs 17,732 to 22,888; Rs 22,889-29,517; Rs 29,518-44,175 and above Rs 44,175, went down by 0.80 percent, 0.72 percent, 73 percent and 0.64 percent respectively.
During the week, out of 51 items, prices of 16 (31.37%) items increased, 18 (35.29%) items decreased and 17 (33.34%) items remained stable.
The items, which recorded major decrease in their average prices on a week-on-week basis included tomatoes (22.77%), chicken (11.05%), onions (9.82%), garlic (8.85%), wheat flour (2.37%), potatoes (2.18%), mustard oil (0.95%), LPG (0.89%) and vegetable ghee 1 kg (0.68%).
The commodities which recorded increase in their average prices on a week-on-week basis included shirting (3.68%), lawn printed (1.47%), long cloth & georgette (1.33%) each, pulse gram (1.03%), cooked beef (0.74%), beef (0.66%), cooked daal (0.56%), mutton (0.48%), pulse moong (0.03%) and rice irri-6/9 & milk fresh (0.02%) each.
Year-on-year basis, the commodities that witnessed decrease included onions (73.63%), tomatoes (52.75%), wheat flour (30.14%), garlic (28.94%), potatoes (20.92%), chilies powder (18.94%), tea packet (16.98%), chicken (15.17%), petrol (13.24%), electricity charges for Q1 (12.66%) and diesel (10.85%).
The commodities which recorded an increase in their average prices on year-on-year basis included ladies sandal (55.62%), pulse moong (27.21%), powdered milk (24.71%), pulse gram (21.00%), beef (19.06%), sugar (17.14%), vegetable ghee 2.5 kg (15.75%), vegetable ghee 1 kg (15.43%), cooked daal (13.40%), firewood (10.49%), shirting (10.28%) and lawn printed (10.26%).