Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Ahsan Iqbal chaired two high-level meetings on Thursday, focusing on stabilizing essential commodity prices and launching a national branding strategy to enhance Pakistan’s economic outlook.
In the first meeting, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) reported a sharp decline in the Consumer Price Index (CPI), which dropped to 0.7% in March 2025 from 20.7% a year earlier—its lowest in recent years. According to PBS, inflation in rural areas stood at 0%, while urban inflation recorded a slight increase of 1.2%, largely due to falling food prices. Despite this improvement, core inflation remained elevated at 8.2% in urban areas and 10.2% in rural regions.
Iqbal welcomed the decline as a positive development but cautioned against complacency, especially during high-consumption periods like Ramadan and Eid. He expressed concern over recent price volatility in commodities such as chicken, onions, potatoes, and bananas, and directed the Ministry of National Food Security and Research to promote frozen poultry as a stabilizing option. He also called for efforts to increase tomato paste production and assess urban-rural price differences in Islamabad.
Addressing deeper structural issues, the minister highlighted the absence of institutional frameworks for key agricultural goods. He called for the establishment of a national edible oil board, improved cold chain infrastructure, and a land optimization strategy to align crop production with demand and import needs. PBS also presented data on significant wholesale-retail price gaps—over 100% in some cases—particularly for onions and potatoes in Karachi and Quetta. The Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) administration requested retailer lists from PBS to take enforcement action.
In a separate session, Iqbal met with CEOs, brand strategists, and industry leaders to discuss Pakistan’s global image. As part of the ‘Uraan Pakistan – National Economic Transformation Plan’, he announced a national branding strategy aimed at positioning Pakistan as a trillion-dollar economy by 2035. Plans were also shared to establish a National Center for Brand Development (NCBD) to promote “Made in Pakistan” products and support SMEs.
“Our national brand should reflect Pakistan’s culture, innovation, and entrepreneurial spirit,” Iqbal said, urging citizens to take ownership of the country’s image both at home and abroad.
