April inflation rises by 10.9%

May 01, 2026 (MLN): Pakistan's headline Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation surged to 10.9% year-on-year (YoY) in April 2026, up sharply from 7.3% in March 2026, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) reported today. This compares to just 0.3% recorded in April 2025.

On a month-on-month (MoM) basis, inflation rose by 2.5% in April 2026, accelerating from 1.2% in March and reversing a 0.8% decline seen in the same month last year.

Cumulatively, on a 10MFY26 basis, the average CPI stands at 6.19% compared to 4.87% in the same period last year.

Urban CPI inflation climbed to 11.1% year-on-year in April, up from 7.4% in March and well above the 0.5% recorded in April 2025. On a monthly basis, urban prices rose 2.7%, building on a 1.3% increase in March and contrasting with a 0.7% decline in the same month last year.

Rural inflation also accelerated sharply, rising to 10.6% YoY from 7.2% in March and swinging from a 0.1% contraction recorded in April 2025. Monthly rural prices increased 2.1%, up from a 1.0% rise in March and reversing a 1.0% decline seen a year earlier.

The Sensitive Price Index rose 10.1% YoY in April, nearly doubling from 5.6% in March and sharply higher than a 3.6% contraction recorded in April 2025. On a monthly basis, the SPI rose 2.0%, compared to a 0.7% gain in March and a 2.1% decline a year earlier.

Wholesale price pressures firmed up considerably. The Wholesale Price Index surged 13.6% YoY in April, versus 6.7% in March and a 2.2% contraction in April 2025. On a monthly basis, WPI rose 5.1%, easing slightly from 5.9% in March but reversing a 1.3% decline seen in the prior year.

Core inflation signals showed a renewed pickup. Urban non-food non-energy (NFNE) inflation edged up to 8.0% YoY from 7.4% in March, also higher than the 7.4% seen a year ago. Monthly urban NFNE rose 1.9%, accelerating from 0.7% in March and above the 1.3% recorded in April 2025.

Rural NFNE held firm at 8.5% YoY, marginally above 8.4% in March, though easing from 9.0% in April 2025. On a monthly basis, rural core prices rose 1.1%, up from 0.8% the prior month and 0.9% a year ago.

The 20% weighted trimmed mean reflected a broad-based intensification of underlying pressures. Urban trimmed mean inflation jumped to 9.2% YoY from 5.9% in March and 3.8% in April 2025, with monthly growth of 1.1%. The rural trimmed mean rose to 8.9% YoY from 6.3% in March and 3.3% a year earlier, with a monthly increase of 1.0%.

Overall, the April data points to a significant broadening and intensification of inflationary pressures, with headline inflation more than tripling its March reading on an annual basis and accelerating sharply across both urban and rural economies  running multiples above year-ago levels.

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