Inflation eases to 8.9pc in Oct

Inflation eased slightly to 8.9 per cent in October, from 9pc in September on the back of a slight decline in prices of fresh fruits and vegetables, data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics showed on Monday.

Higher food prices continued to exert upward pressure on inflation as prices of food group rose 16.53pc year-on-year and 3.9pc month-on-month in October.

The prices of essential food items — tomatoes, onions, chicken, eggs, sugar and wheat — have seen a consistent increase over the last couple of months. Having a maximum share in the food basket, a slight increase in kitchen items raises overall inflation.

Year-on-year in October, wheat price went up by 52.21pc, wheat flour 24.67pc, rice 8.6pc, eggs 43.32pc and sugar 32.97pc.

With shortages in domestic production, the current fiscal year started with 9.3pc inflation in July, which eased to 8.2pc in August before rebounding to 9pc in September.

Meanwhile, food prices see a continuing increase of 16.5pc

It may be mentioned here that the average CPI between July and October eased from last year’s 10.32pc to 8.86pc this year, but the average CPI in FY20 rose to 10.74pc, from 6.8pc in the year before — the highest level since 2011-12 when it stood at 11.01pc.