The Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI) for the week ending September 5, 2024, recorded a 0.15% decrease, according to data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) on Friday.
This marks the fourth consecutive weekly decline in the SPI, bringing it down to the lowest level in three years.
The PBS report highlighted significant reductions in the prices of essential commodities, with tomatoes experiencing the most notable drop at 14.54%. Other items that saw price decreases included chicken (down 1.55%), wheat flour (down 1.31%), chili powder (down 1.30%), diesel (down 1.23%), petrol (down 0.68%), pulse Masoor (down 0.59%), sugar (down 0.54%), pulse Mash (down 0.49%), and 5-liter cooking oil (down 0.41%).
However, the report also noted price increases for certain items, including onions (up 3.83%), pulse gram (up 1.65%), garlic (up 1.38%), LPG (up 0.90%), cooked daal and cooked beef (each up 0.70%), eggs (up 0.54%), potatoes (up 0.50%), rice basmati broken (up 0.34%), and georgette fabric (up 0.14%).
Of the 51 items tracked, prices for 19 items (37.25%) increased, 13 items (25.50%) decreased, and 19 items (37.25%) remained unchanged.
On a year-on-year basis, the SPI for the week ending September 5, 2024, was recorded at 14.07%, marking the lowest level since October 14, 2021, when it stood at 12.66%, according to data from brokerage firm Arif Habib Limited. This represents the fourth successive week of declining weekly inflation in Pakistan.
The SPI is computed weekly to assess the price movement of essential commodities, providing a more immediate gauge of inflation trends in the country.
The latest figures align with Pakistan’s headline inflation rate, which clocked in at 9.6% year-on-year in August 2024. This is a significant decrease from the 11.1% recorded in July 2024, with the Consumer Price Index (CPI)-based inflation returning to single digits for the first time in three years, as per PBS data.
The continued decline in inflation is strengthening the case for another policy rate cut by the central bank, with the next Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting scheduled for Thursday.
