ISLAMABAD: The weekly inflation, measured by the Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI), recorded a decline of 0.62 percent for the combined consumption groups during the week concluded on August 29, 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 registered at 319.73 points as compared to 321.72 points during the past week.
While comparing to the corresponding week of last year, the SPI for the combined consumption group in the week under review saw an increase of 15.34 percent.
The weekly SPI with the base year 2015-16 =100 covers 17 urban centres and 51 basic items for all expenditure groups.
The SPI for the lowest consumption group of up to Rs 17,732, saw an increase of 0.24 percent and went up to 310.80 points from previous week’s 310.29 points.
The SPI for consumption group of Rs 17,732 to 22,888 also registered an increase of 0.11 percent. However, the SPI for the consumption groups of Rs 22,889-29,517; Rs 29,518-44,175 and above Rs 44,175 fell by 0.64 percent, 0.86 and 0.58 percent respectively.
During the week, out of 51 items, prices of 17 (33.33%) commodities raised, 10 (19.61%) items reduced and 24 (47.06%) products remained stable.
The items, which recorded major decline in their average prices on a week-on-week basis included chicken (3.02%), wheat flour (0.85%), bananas (2.35%), chilies powder (1.42%), pulse mash (0.53%), pulse masoor (0.68%), bread (0.56%), and sugar (0.49%).
The commodities which registered major increase in their average prices on week-on-week basis included tomatoes (8.03%), pulse gram (2.20%), onions (6.53%), garlic (1.76%), eggs (0.55%), LPG (0.51%), potatoes (0.63%), firewood (0.12%), gur and rice basmati broken (0.41%) each, and shirting (0.07%).
On-year basis, the commodities that saw decline included wheat flour (36.73%), electricity charges for q1 (16.91%), chilies powder (18.94%), sugar (16.08%), petrol (10.07%), cooking oil 5 litre (11.32%), diesel (9.22%), vegetable ghee 2.5 kg (7.24%), rice basmati broken (8.81%), vegetable ghee 1 kg (6.20%), and washing soap (0.35%).
The items which registered an increase in their average prices on year-on-year basis included gas charges for q1 (570.00%), onions (95.16%), tomatoes (43.21%), pulse gram (53.59%), powered milk (26.14%), beef (23.93%), pulse moong (23.72%), garlic (25.74%), shirting (23.70%), salt powder (21.45%), georgette (15.18%) and energy saver (12.87%.
