ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s year-on-year inflation for the month of November clocked in at 29.2 %. This figure was revealed in data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) on Friday. Following the footsteps of the previous fiscal year, the average inflation for FY24 has now reached 28.6%.
On a month-on-month basis the CPI rose by 2.7% marking yet another month of significant increase in prices. As per the details published by the PBS, the food inflation was recorded at 28%, housing 33% and transport at 26.5%.
Similarly on a monthly basis, the highest increase in prices was seen in housing (11%) and clothing(2.4%). Even though the price of transport went down by 2.8%, it failed to provide any respite to the overall levels of inflation.
Taking to social media platform X (formerly Twitter), former finance minister, Miftah Ismail highlighted that “The trouble was urban non-food that increased by 7% MoM. The growth is almost entirely due to an increase in gas prices for domestic consumers by 280% MoM. “
The weekly inflation, as measured by the Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI), exhibited a modest decrease of 0.23 percent for the combined consumption group during the week ending November 30. Notably, when compared to the corresponding week of the previous year, the SPI for the combined consumption group witnessed an alarming increase of 41.05 %.
The high year-on-year trend of SPI, reveals substantial rises in items such as Gas Charges for Q1 (1108.59%), Cigarettes (94.20%), and Wheat Flour (87.27%), raising concerns among the public. However, some relief is seen in the prices of tomatoes (-23.12%), onions (-22.36%), Mustard Oil (-4.09%), and specific types of Vegetable Ghee, where a decline in prices is noted.
The commodities that experienced an increase in average prices on a Year-on-Year basis include Gas Charges for Q1 (1108.59%), Cigarettes (94.20%), Wheat Flour (87.27%), Chilies Powder (81.74%), Rice Basmati Broken (75.79%), and others, emphasizing the challenges faced by consumers in the current economic landscape.
