The Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI), which measures weekly inflation, reached a seven-week peak of 15.02% year-on-year, driven mainly by rising food prices, according to figures released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) on Friday.
On a week-to-week basis, inflation rose by 0.28% for the week ending October 17, 2024, marking an uptick after a slowdown in the previous week.
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The SPI tracks the prices of 51 essential items, with data collected from 50 markets across 17 cities. Of these items, the prices of 19 (37.25%) increased, 9 (17.65%) decreased, while 23 (45.10%) remained unchanged compared to the prior week.
The week-on-week inflation increase was primarily due to a surge in tomato prices, which jumped by 26.24%, reaching Rs148.40 per kilogram from Rs117.55 per kilogram. Moong pulse followed with a 9.86% hike, reaching Rs366.22 per kilogram.
Other significant price increases included gram pulse, up by 3.15% to Rs418.27 per kilogram, and a 2.10% rise in the cost of a 20kg wheat flour bag, now priced at Rs1,865.03. Additionally, the cost of high-speed diesel climbed by 2.01%, reaching Rs252.43 per litre.
Several other essential items, including LPG, garlic, chicken, and eggs, also experienced price hikes of up to 1.50%.
