Weekly inflation up by 4% due to sharp increase in electricity prices

Owing to a sharp increase in electricity prices, the sensitive pricing index (SPI), which measures weekly inflation, increased by more than 4 per cent.

According to data released on Friday by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), the SPI-based inflation rate increased 4.13 per cent from the previous week to the week ending October 27 while increasing 30.68 per cent from the same time last year.

The cost of power, salt, rice, and other basic commodities went up on average during the previous week.

According to Geo, there has been a decrease in the cost of 16 goods, including chicken, tomatoes, onions, and masoor pulses. In the meantime, the prices for 14 necessities remained the same.

Electricity costs up by 89 per cent

An increase from week to week is mostly caused by an 89 per cent increase in electricity costs.

Recall that a negative Rs10 per unit adjustment to fuel prices was implemented in September. The government opted to postpone the Rs. 10 per unit adjustment for the June fuel price, but it had already been accounted for in the inflation figures for August, therefore it was corrected for in the September inflation figures.

Inflation is expected to be 25.7 per cent in October, up from 23.2 per cent in September, according to the brokerage.

In the week under examination, the combined income group index increased from 205.27 points for the week that concluded on October 20 to 213.74 points.

In comparison to the prior week, the SPI for the income bracket with the lowest income rose by 4.64 per cent. The group’s index was 220.56 points, up from 210.78 points the previous week.

Increase in prices

Prices of the following items increased:

Food items

Salt powdered: 2.57 per cent

Tea Lipton: 1.89 per cent

Rice: 1.24 per cent

Garlic: 1.04 per cent

Non-food items

Electricity charges for Q1: 89.34 per cent

Energy saver: 1.57 per cent

Reduction in prices

Prices of the following items decreased:

Food items

Tomatoes: -3.77 per cent

Onions: -2.97 per cent

Pulse Masoor: -2.50 per cent

Chicken: -1.86 per cent

Pulse Gram: -1.35 per cent

Gur: -1.09 per cent

Non-food items

LPG: -0.72 per cent