ISLAMABAD, Dec 1: The price of wheat flour has risen to a national average of Rs17.36 per kg from Rs16 a week ago, according to the data released by the Statistics Division on Saturday.

But the Economic Coordination Committee was told on Friday that the average flour price was Rs15.39.

The Federal Bureau of Statistics said the flour price in Peshawar’s retail market stood at Rs21.33 a kg during the week ended on Nov 29. The price was much higher in Swat, Dir, Chitral because of transportation charges and dealer’s margin.

In other cities, the price ranged between Rs17 and Rs20.

In Karachi, the flour is being sold for Rs19.31 per kg, in Hyderabad Rs18.13, Sukkur Rs18, Larkana Rs18 and Quetta Rs19.

The average flour price in all major cities of Punjab like Lahore, Rawalpindi, Gujranwala, Sialkot, Faisalabad, Sargodha and Bahawalpur stood at around Rs16 a kg, but in Multan it is sold at Rs17 a kg.

Similar trend was witnessed in the price of wheat across the country. The wheat price of average quality reached Rs16.94 per kg from Rs15.33 a week ago.

In the NWFP, the average wheat price stood at Rs18.25 per kg, except for Bannu where it is sold at Rs17.50. The price of wheat in the province is higher than the national average.

Adviser to Finance Ministry Dr Ashfaq Hassan Khan said told Dawn that flour price in Pakistan is lower in the region as it stood at Rs37 in Dhaka, Rs20.40 per kg in Delhi.

Mr Khan claimed that prices of rice, flour, sugar, pulse, edible oil, tea, diesel and kerosene are much lower in Pakistan than in other countries of the region.