Short-term inflation eases

Published August 31, 2024
THE Ministry of Finance expects policy rate cuts to slow down inflation and support sustainable economic recovery in the current fiscal year.—Online/file
THE Ministry of Finance expects policy rate cuts to slow down inflation and support sustainable economic recovery in the current fiscal year.—Online/file

ISLAMABAD: Short-term inflation, measured by the Sensitive Price Index (SPI), slowed to 15.34 per cent year-on-year in the week ending August 29 due to a decline in the prices of vegetables and pulses, official data showed on Friday.

It fell by 0.62pc week-on-week.

The inflation declined due to a price drop in key vegetables and last year’s high base effect. According to experts, the government has approved sugar exports, which push up domestic retail prices for consumers. The national average price for sugar is Rs160 per kilogramme.

In March, the decline in SPI came after a consistent 11-week period of inflation above 40pc, which surged from 29pc recorded on November 8 2023. The weekly inflation hit a record 48.35pc year-on-year in early May 2023, but then decelerated as low as 24.4pc in late August 2023 before surging past 40pc during the week ending on Nov 16, 2023.

The items whose prices saw the decline week-on-week included chicken (3.02pc), bananas (2.35pc), chillies powder (1.42pc), wheat flour (0.85pc), pulse masoor (0.68pc), bread (0.56pc), pulse mash (0.53pc) and sugar (0.49pc).

The items whose prices increased the most over the previous week included tomatoes (8.03pc), onions (6.53pc), pulse gram (2.20pc), garlic (1.76pc), potatoes (0.63pc), eggs (0.55pc), LPG (0.51pc), gur and rice basmati broken (0.41pc) each, firewood (0.12pc) and shirting (0.07pc).

Published in Dawn, August 31st, 2024

Follow Dawn Business on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook for insights on business, finance and tech from Pakistan and across the world.

Opinion

Editorial

Time to deliver
Updated 11 Nov, 2024

Time to deliver

Pakistan must display a serious commitment to climate change adaptation and mitigation at home.
Smaller government
11 Nov, 2024

Smaller government

THE IMF bailout programme has put the government under pressure to curtail its spending, especially current...
Unsafe inheritance
11 Nov, 2024

Unsafe inheritance

DESPITE regulations, the troubling practice of robbing women of their rightful inheritance — the culprits are ...
Quetta bombing
Updated 10 Nov, 2024

Quetta bombing

THERE appears to be no end to the stream of violent incidents occurring in Balochistan, indicating a clear failure ...
Burdened courts
10 Nov, 2024

Burdened courts

ACCORDING to recent reports, the new chief justice has set about implementing a recently adopted plan for clearing...
Playing in Pakistan
10 Nov, 2024

Playing in Pakistan

MOHSIN Naqvi, Pakistan’s cricket chief, has shown a brave face. Now he has to be unrelenting and put the onus on...