The Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI) based weekly inflation for the week ending September 15 for the combined consumption group witnessed a decrease of 0.19 percent compared to the previous week. The SPI for the week under review in the above-mentioned group was 221.14 points against 221.55 points registered in the previous week, according to the latest data of Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).

As compared to the corresponding week of last year, the SPI for the combined consumption group in the week under review witnessed an increase of 40.58 percent. The weekly SPI with base year 2015-16 =100 is covering 17 urban centres and 51 essential items for all expenditure groups. The SPI for the lowest consumption group up to Rs17,732 witnessed 0.31 percent decrease and went down from 225.67 points the previous week to 224.98 points during the week under review.

Meanwhile, the SPI for the consumption groups from Rs17,732-22,888; Rs22,889-29,517; Rs29,518-44,175 and above Rs44,175 decreased by 0.22 percent, 0.16 percent, 0.15 percent and 0.19 percent respectively. During the week, out of 51 items, prices of 30 (58.82%) items increased, 10 (19.61%) items decreased and 11 (21.57%) items remained stable.

The items which recorded decrease in their average prices on WoW basis included onions (16.24%), tomatoes (9.84%), bananas (2.50%), chicken (1.88%), sugar (0.95%), vegetable ghee 1kg (0.39%), potatoes (0.33%), vegetable ghee 2.5kg (0.23%), cooking oil 5 litre (0.10%) and LPG (2.62%). The commodities which recorded increase in their average prices included tea packet (6.30%), pulse moong (3.46%), eggs (2.54%), cooked beef and pulse gram (2.53%) each, wheat flour (1.96%), rice irri 6/9 (1.73%), cooked daal (1.71%), pulse mash (1.68%) and bread (1.45%).

On a year-on-year basis, the commodities that witnessed decrease in prices included chillies powder (43.05%), sugar (19.83%) and gurr (2.50%). The commodities that witnessed increase in prices on YoY basis included tomatoes (170.51%), diesel (105.12%), petrol (90.73%), pulse masoor (76.65%), pulse gram (67.11%), mustard oil (65.75%), cooking oil 5 litre (65.45%), washing soap (61.05%), vegetable ghee 2.5 kg (60.68%), LPG (56.61%), vegetable ghee 1 kg (56.46%), pulse mash (53.41%) and electricity for q1 (52.04%).

Credit: Independent News Pakistan-WealthPk