The Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI) for this week recorded an increase of 0.71 percent over the last week due to the rise in prices of food items i.e. tomatoes (27.71 percent), eggs (5.69 percent), chicken (4.94 percent), and non-food items i.e. energy saver light bulb (2.49 percent).
According to the latest data, released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), the SPI went up from 136.62 points during the previous week to 137.59 points during the week under review.
The year on year trend depicts an increase of 8.72 percent with most of the items’ prices increasing, including tomatoes (87.94 percent), chili powder (86.31 percent), potatoes (69.71 percent), pulse moong (41.71 percent), eggs (39.57 percent), pulse mash (35.92 percent), sugar (26.66 percent, pulse masoor (24.53 percent), bread (18.80 percent), matchbox (18.03 percent), vegetable ghee 1 kg (17.58 percent), gur (17.50 percent), wheat flour bag (16.41 percent), washing soap (15.86 percent), rice IRRI 6/9 (15.77 percent), long cloth (15.45 percent) and vegetable ghee 2.5 kg (15.31 percent). While a major decrease was observed in the price of onions (32.79 percent), chicken (23.75 percent), diesel (16.10 percent), garlic (12.33 percent), petrol (8.11 percent), and LPG (5.99 percent).
The weekly SPI covers 17 urban centers and 51 essential items for all expenditure groups. During the week, out of 51 items, prices of 26 (50.98 percent) items increased, 3 (5.88 percent) items decreased and 22 (43.14 percent) items remained constant, according to the provisional figures released by the PBS.
The SPI for the consumption groups went from Rs. 17,733 to Rs. 22,888, Rs. 22,889 to Rs. 29,517, Rs. 29,518 to Rs. 44,175 and above Rs. 44,175 per month, increasing by 0.86 percent, 0.86 percent, 0.80 percent, 0.77 percent, and 0.63 percent respectively.
The commodities, which recorded increase in their average price include tomatoes (27.71 percent), eggs (5.69 percent), chicken farm broiler (4.94 percent), energy saver light bulb (2.49 percent), sufi washing soap (1.18 percent), georgette (1.11 percent), pulse mash (0.89 percent), gur (0.86 percent), sugar refined (0.86 percent), tea prepared (0.73 percent), onions (0.49 percent), pulse moong (0.44 percent), vegetable ghee (0.40 percent), cooking oil (0.35 percent), vegetable ghee (0.28 percent), firewood whole (0.24 percent), pulse masoor (0.24 percent), pulse gram (0.20 percent), mutton (0.16 percent), wheat flour bag 20 kg (0.15 percent) and rice irri-6/9 (sindh/punjab) (0.09 percent).
The commodities, which recorded a decrease in their average price, include bananas (4.74 percent), LPG (1.01 percent), and potatoes (0.23 percent).
Prices of the commodities that observed no change during the week include rice basmati broken (average quality), bread plain (small size), beef with bone, salt powdered, chilies powder, tea Lipton yellow label, cooked beef, cooked daal, cigarettes capstan 20’s packet, long cloth 57″ Gul Ahmed/Al Karam, shirting (average quality), lawn printed Gul Ahmed/Al Karam, gents sandal, gents sponge chappal bata, ladies sandal bata pair, petrol super per liter, hi-speed diesel, telephone call charges, and toilet soap.
