ISLAMABAD – Pakistan’s short-term inflation, measured through the Sensitive Price Index (SPI), rose by 0.24% in the week ending May 8, 2025, compared to the previous week, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) reported on Friday. However, the SPI registered a 0.80% decline on a year-on-year basis.
Out of the 51 essential items tracked during the week, prices of 9 items (17.65%) increased, 17 items (33.33%) decreased, and 25 items (49.02%) remained unchanged.
The largest weekly price hikes were recorded in chicken (10.20%), eggs (7.36%), sugar (1.93%), beef (1.50%), pulse mash (0.31%), cooked beef (0.20%), mutton (0.15%), and gur (0.11%).
Conversely, notable declines were observed in the prices of tomatoes (-8.81%), garlic (-5.05%), potatoes (-3.33%), onions (-2.08%), LPG (-1.66%), bananas (-0.93%), petrol (-0.83%), diesel (-0.78%), wheat flour (-0.76%), vegetable ghee 1kg (-0.46%), and mustard oil (-0.33%).
On a yearly basis, items that recorded the sharpest price drops included onions (-62.53%), tomatoes (-44.54%), garlic (-36.16%), electricity charges for Q1 (-29.40%), and potatoes (-27.42%). However, price increases were seen in ladies sandals (55.62%), pulse moong (28.47%), chicken (27.35%), powdered milk (22.27%), pulse gram (20.81%), bananas (19.86%), and sugar (19.36%).
The inflation impact was uneven across income groups. The lowest income group experienced a 0.10% weekly rise in inflation, while the highest income group saw an increase of 0.26%. On a yearly basis, the lowest income group recorded a decline of 1.65%, while the highest income group saw a 0.21% increase.
Meanwhile, the average price of Sona urea dropped to Rs4,492 per 50kg bag, down 0.29% from the previous week and 7.39% lower year-on-year. Cement prices also saw a weekly drop of 0.17%, now averaging Rs1,421 per 50kg bag, though they remain 17.88% higher than a year ago.
The SPI is compiled weekly by PBS to monitor short-term price changes for 51 essential items across 50 markets in 17 cities, providing a snapshot of inflationary trends that directly affect household budgets.
