SPI eases to 4.16% YoY

November 15, 2024 (MLN): Pakistan's short-term inflation eased significantly to 4.16% over the prior year, the lowest annual gain since October 2018.

On a weekly basis, SPI increased by 0.55% as of November 14, 2024, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) reported on Friday.

PBS calculates short-term inflation using the sensitive price indicator (SPI) on a weekly basis to assess the price movement of essential commodities at shorter interval of time so as to review the price situation in the country

SPI comprises of 51 essential items collected from 50 markets in 17 cities of the country. During the week, out of these items, prices of 24 (47.06%) items increased, 06 (11.76%) items decreased and 21 (41.18%) items remained stable.

On a weekly basis, a major increase was observed in the prices of Tomatoes (16.86%), Eggs (5.01%), Garlic (4.30%), LPG (4.10%), and Firewood (2.07%).

On the other hand, a decrease was observed in the prices of Pulse Gram (2.51%), Pulse Mash (0.87%), Bananas (0.18%), Chicken (0.07%), and Wheat Flour (0.01%).

The weekly SPI percentage change by income groups showed that SPI increased across all quantiles ranging 0.44% and 0.83%.

The lowest income group experienced a weekly rise of 0.83%, while the highest income group experienced a rise of 0.44%.

During the year, a major increase was observed in the price of Pulse Gram (74.53%), Pulse Moong (38.88%), Powdered Milk (25.74%), Beef (23.02%), and Onions (22.78%).

While a major decrease was observed in the prices of Wheat Flour (34.98%), Chilies Powder (20.00%), Diesel (13.92%), Petrol (11.64%), and Tea Lipton (11.22%).

Analysis of SPI change across different income segments on a yearly basis showed that SPI increased across all quantiles ranging between 2.33% and 4.75%.

Yearly SPI for the Lowest Income Group increased by 2.33% while the highest income group recorded an increase of 4.75%.

The average price of Sona urea stood at Rs4,593 per 50 kg bag, 0.22% higher than last week’s price, and 16.88% higher when compared to last year.

Meanwhile, the average Cement price rose to Rs1,437 per 50 kg bag, which is 0.38% lower than the previous week while 20.19% higher than prices last year.

Copyright Mettis Link News