June 07, 2008	Saturday	Jamadi-us-Sani 02, 1429

ISLAMABAD, June 6: The weekly inflation increased by 26.16 per cent during the week ended on June 5 on the back of rising food and oil prices over the corresponding week of last year.

The inflation, measured through the Sensitive Price Index (SPI), hit hard the low-income group mainly due to persistent increase in the essential kitchen items.

This highest-ever jump in inflation occurred due to increase in the prices of 22 items of daily use during the week under review, according to the Statistics Division data issued on Friday.

The SPI witnessed an increase of 30.11 and 29.25pc for households in the two lower income brackets of up to Rs3, 000 and Rs3, 001 to Rs5, 000, respectively. For households with an income of Rs5,001 to 12,000, it surged by 26.88pc and for income-group above Rs12,000 by 23.29pc over the week last year.

The price of onions increased by 6.70pc to Rs16.25 per kg; milk powered (Nido) by 5.94pc at Rs157.37 per 400 gm; kerosene by 5.73pc to Rs53.11 per litre and potatoes by 3.15pc to Rs17.34 per kg during the week.

The price of lawn rose by 2.33pc to Rs90.65 per metre, wheat by 1.99pc to Rs20.53 per kg, masoor pulse washed by 1.70pc to Rs111.23 per kg and bread plain (mid size) by 1.46pc to Rs21.59.

Voil printed price increased by 1.31pc to Rs44.82 per metre and shirting by 1.20pc to Rs73.94 per metre. The LPG 11-kg cylinder went up by 0.94pc to Rs664.74, rice basmati broken by 0.53pc to Rs54.66 per kg and gur by 0.47pc to Rs31.79 per kg.

Milk fresh price went up by 0.36pc to Rs33.78 per kg, coarse latha by 0.36pc to Rs42.22 per metre and firewood 0.25pc to Rs237.16 per 40 kg.

The price of beef increased by 0.23pc to Rs130.72 per kg; rice Irri-6 by 0.22pc to Rs49.68 per kg and gram pulse washed by 0.15pc to Rs59.81 per kg, curd by 0.05pc to Rs39.77 per kg, mutton by 0.04pc to Rs246.39 per kg and mustard oil by 0.01pc to Rs144.94 per kg.